The US Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled on Friday to reinstate the use of secure ballot drop boxes for the 2024 elections. This decision reverses a prior 2022 ruling by the court’s then-conservative majority, which had banned this method for returning absentee ballots. The 2022 decision mandated that absentee ballots must be returned either by mail or in person directly to municipal clerks.
The appellants argued that there is nothing in Wisconsin state law preventing municipal clerks from accepting ballots at locations other than their offices, including via secure ballot drop boxes. The majority opinion, rendered in a 4-3 decision, concurred, declaring that the 2022 decision was “unsound in principle” and affirming that Wisconsin law allows the use of ballot drop boxes. The court stated that delivering an absentee ballot in a drop box constitutes delivery to the municipal clerk within the meaning of state law because these drop boxes are managed by the municipal clerk.
Conservative justices on the court criticized the decision. In her dissent, Justice Rebecca Bradley likened the ruling to the court’s December 2023 decision overturning the state’s legislative maps, suggesting it was an attempt to influence future elections. Meanwhile, Governor Tony Evers requested the reinstatement of drop boxes, describing them as a secure method for delivering absentee ballots that fully protects election integrity. Evers later praised the court’s ruling and promised to ensure the right for every eligible voter to vote securely.
Reactions among Republican state legislators varied. While some criticized the decision, others, like Representative Scott Krug, chair of the Assembly campaigns and elections committee, advised focusing on upcoming elections and called on supporters to provide oversight and accountability at polling sites. Previously, the court in 2022 had granted an injunction against the use of absentee ballot drop boxes, arguing that their use was not expressly authorized by statute and required legislative approval.
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