Vos recall election; Trump supporters submit petitions
MADISON, Wis. - He's the most powerful Republican in the state government, but now Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is one step closer to a recall.
It’s brought on by supporters of former President Donald Trump, who submitted petitions on Monday, March 11, seeking to force a recall election targeting Vos, who angered them when he refused to impeach the official who oversees the battleground state's elections.
Recall organizers said they submitted more than 4,000 extra signatures to the Wisconsin Elections Commission on Monday. This sets off a timeline separate from already-scheduled elections, because organizers said it can’t wait.
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Matthew Snorek initiated the recall of Vos in January, accusing him of obstructing fair elections. He said the speaker failed to impeach Meagan Wolfe, the state’s top elections official.
Robin Vos
"This fight for integrity and transparency in our elections cannot wait," Snorek said. "The cost, scare tactics deployed by Speaker Vos will not deter us. We understand the real cost is the inaction."
Wolfe has been a target of those who falsely believe that Trump won Wisconsin in 2020.
Vos has repeatedly said he was not in favor of impeaching Wolfe because there was not enough support among fellow Republicans to do so. He has said he wants to see Wolfe replaced, but a judge last year blocked the Legislature from taking steps to remove her.
Meagan Wolfe, Robin Vos
"It’s truly sad that a group of people who didn’t get their way in the 2020 election are wasting resources and effort working with Democrats to settle a political score rather than better using their time to defeat our ineffective Democrat President," Vos said in a statement.
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So, what comes next?
The commission has 31 days to determine if the petition has enough valid signatures, which can be appealed in court. If a petition is determined to be sufficient, a recall election must be called for six weeks later.
That means if there is a recall election for Vos, it would most likely take place between late April and late May.
Vos has 10 days to challenge signatures that were collected. He can challenge on a variety of grounds, including that a person signed more than once, signed someone else's name or doesn't live in the legislative district. He can also challenge if he believes the person circulating the petition misled the signer about its intent or if a signature was not collected during the allowable circulation period.
"Fail to serve the people and you could be next," Snorek said.
The WEC will meet Tuesday, March 12 to discuss the recall’s next steps.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.