Besides the high-stakes votes for president, U.S. senator and other legislative and local elections, Wisconsin voters in 2024 will be voting on two proposals to amend the state Constitution.
The amendments — one that would bar the use of private grants in elections and another that would enshrine in the Constitution language barring noncitizens from voting in the state — come amid increased calls by conservatives to bypass Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ veto power and protect Republican priorities now that the state Supreme Court holds a liberal majority.
While the two proposals on tap next year would enact relatively minor changes, Republican lawmakers are pursuing several other efforts to alter the state Constitution, including measures to take away the governor’s authority to spend some federal funds and to require a two-thirds vote in both legislative chambers to increase taxes. Other proposals working their way through the Legislature would bar the closure of places of worship during states of emergency and codify state law requiring photo ID to cast a ballot.
People are also reading…
Some conservative groups have urged lawmakers to take up additional amendments to enshrine GOP policies like the state’s right-to-work law and private school voucher program.
With a 4-3 liberal majority following the election of liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz, the Wisconsin Supreme Court threatens to undo conservative measures passed over the last several years, including GOP-drawn legislative maps that heavily favor Republicans.
“Republicans’ only real backstop to prevent undoing of their conservative legislative and judicial accomplishments over the past 15 years is their majorities in the state Legislature,” said Barry Burden, UW-Madison politics professor and director of the Elections Research Center. “Enshrining some conservative ideas in the state Constitution is a way to protect them even if Republicans lack full control over state government.”
Unlike bills, the governor cannot veto constitutional amendments.
Such measures must pass two successive legislative sessions before voters have the final say. If enacted, such changes can only be reversed through the same amendment process or by a court order.
Since the adoption of the state Constitution in 1848, voters have weighed in on 200 proposed amendments. Of those, 148 have been approved, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau.
Ten of those constitutional amendments have come before Wisconsin voters in the past two decades. All but one, an effort to eliminate the state treasurer’s office in 2018, were adopted.
The most recent changes, a pair of amendments giving judges more options for keeping people arrested for violent crimes in custody pending trial, were passed in April by two-thirds of Wisconsin voters.
“Ballot issues — both constitutional amendments and nonbinding resolutions — have been used regularly by parties and groups in recent years to help generate higher turnout from their supporters,” Burden said. “These measures do not produce large effects in terms of voter turnout, but in a highly competitive state even a small benefit from an engaging ballot issue could help a party win an election.”
2 election questions
While the Legislature voted on several proposed amendments in the most recent legislative session, only two have been approved by two successive state Legislatures, clearing the way for them to head to voters next year.
Senate Joint Resolution 78 would bar the state from receiving private funds to help administer elections, while Senate Joint Resolution 71 would add language to the state Constitution barring anyone who is not a U.S. citizen from voting in Wisconsin elections.
The Republican-led Legislature passed a bill blocking private grants for election administration, but it was vetoed last year by Evers.
“People need to trust that elections are conducted fairly and impartially,” state Sen. Eric Wimberger, who co-authored the private election grants proposal, said in a video message posted on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “Wisconsin’s status as a swing state makes election integrity measures important locally, nationally and internationally.”
The measure on private funds will come before voters in the spring nonpartisan election on April 2, while the U.S. citizen amendment will be decided in the general election on Nov. 5.
Republicans contend the amendments give Wisconsinites final say on conservative policies at the ballot box. Opponents argue they are taking advantage of the process to bypass the governor as a way to cement their power.
“Now is the time to be mindful that our Constitution not become the repository for a flurry of controversial, restrictive social policies with misleading and ambiguous language that the gerrymandered Legislature is proposing which, if passed, will be enshrined in our Constitution,” Joan Schwarz, a retired attorney and secretary of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, said in a league issues discussion earlier this month.
Elections 101: Video series explains how elections are carried out in Wisconsin
The Wisconsin Elections Commission put together the following series of instructional videos and accompanying lesson plans for use in high school civics classes and the general public.
An overview of elections administration in Wisconsin.
Let's take a look at how we maintain security and integrity with all of our elections.
The ins-and-outs of voter processes like registering to vote and requesting a ballot to vote absentee.
See what it is like to go to the polls and vote.