Author: MacIverNews

State Senate Starts Wolfe’s Confirmation Process Despite WEC’s Games

By MacIverNews -
, ,

June 30, 2023 | MacIver News Service

Meagan Wolfe’s future as the administrator for the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) is uncertain after the state senate passed a resolution Wednesday night to start her confirmation process. She is allowed to remain in her position while that process plays out.

WEC consists of six partisan appointed members with an administrator who runs day to day operations. The members nominate an administrator to a four-year term, and that choice must be confirmed by the state senate.

Wolfe has held the position since 2019, most of which time has been embroiled by controversy. She was the one who told clerks to violate state election laws and she was the one who helped a Facebook-funded Democrat operative get access to local election officials.

Wolfe’s term expires on Saturday, July 1st. WEC met on Tuesday to vote on reappointing her to a second term. However, three of six members refused to vote. Four votes were required to make the reappointment, and so WEC was unable to submit Wolfe’s nomination to the senate for confirmation.

“I’m not saying she will be confirmed, I’m not saying she won’t be confirmed, but she has to go through the process,” Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Irma) said.

The three members who withheld their votes, all Democrats, argued that there is no vacancy to fill and so there was no need to take the vote. They want Wolfe to continue her duties past Saturday as if nothing changed. They believed that if they refused to nominate Wolfe, then the senate would not be able to remove her from the position through the confirmation process.

In response, the state senate passed a resolution on Wednesday night initiating the confirmation process even though Wolfe’s nomination was never submitted. Senate rules state that it will begin the initiation process five days after an individual is nominated for an appointment, even if that nomination is not formally submitted.

““The confirmation process for appointments to public office is a critical constitutional function of the Senate. We took action to ensure the advice and consent of the Senate will not be subverted,” said Sen. Duey Stroebel (R-Cedarburg)

“With this resolution, we are beginning to reclaim our role as senators to ultimately approve or vote down appointments,” said Sen. Cabral-Guevara (R-Appleton) “As I have with every other appointment we’ve voted on this session, I look forward to considering Administrator Wolfe’s appointment as a part of our job.”

Regardless of WEC’s attempt to circumvent the nomination process, it’s obvious that it intends to keep her in place as the administrator for another term. And so, “the Wisconsin state senate considers Meagan Wolfe to have been nominated by the Wisconsin Elections Commission as administrator to serve for a term of office expiring on July 1, 2027.”

“I’m not saying she will be confirmed, I’m not saying she won’t be confirmed, but she has to go through the process,” Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Irma) said on the Meg Ellefson Show Thursday.

After the commissioners met on Tuesday, Wolfe commented “I truly appreciate the unanimous support of all the Commissioners. I serve at the pleasure of the Commission and will continue to take their direction on next steps forward.