Updated Feb. 2 at 12:40 p.m. CDT
A Dane County circuit court judge has allowed the community organization Voces De La Frontera to intervene in the Wisconsin Election Commission’s lawsuit against the Republican-led Wisconsin Legislature. The plaintiffs are suing to block subpoenas issued by former conservative State Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman as part of his legislatively-authorized probe into the 2020 election.
Judge Rhonda Lanford found that Gableman served Voces De La Frontera with subpoenas similar to those sent to the Wisconsin Elections Commission. She found the Commission could not protect Voces De La Frontera’s interests. Lanford also said a separate lawsuit would waste taxpayer dollars and could result in conflicting decisions by different judges.
Our earlier story from Jan. 20 at 11:25 a.m. CDT follows below.
A Milwaukee-based Latino organization is battling back against a Republican-backed probe of the 2020 presidential election in Wisconsin.
Voces de la Frontera said it recently received a subpoena from the former State Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman, who is conducting the review. The organization said Gableman wants a "mountain of internal documents related to the 2020 election."
Voces asked attorney Dan Lenz of the group LawForward to file a request to participate in a lawsuit the Wisconsin Elections Commission has already filed against Gableman and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos.
Lenz said Gableman's subpoena threatens the Constitutional rights of Voces' members.
"Particularly their right to assemble and to advocate on behalf of the issues that are important to Voces. This subpoena seeks internal communications, internal financial information, information about Voces' advocacy activity, and it appears to be outside the scope of what the Assembly has authorized in terms of the investigation," Lenz said.
By sending a subpoena to Voces, Lenz also said that Gableman has taken his probe in a new direction.
"At this point, he has extended his investigation apart from election officials in the state and in the cities, and now into private groups and the activities of their members, which are protected by the Constitution," Lenz said.
At a WisPolitics luncheon in Madison Wednesday, Vos, who lives in Racine County, defended Gableman and criticized the critics.
"Why wouldn't you just let the investigation occur? [Then,] you could stand up at the end and say there was nothing to be found. Or, we can stand up and say this is what needs to be fixed," Vos argued.
WisPolitics reports it's unclear if the Gableman probe will conclude by the end of February. Gableman is expected to spend nearly $700,000 in taxpayer money on the investigation.
