Vos recall petition identity theft, Racine County DA reports calls
RACINE, Wis. - The Racine County District Attorney's Office said Wednesday it has fielded "numerous" calls about reported identity theft related to an effort to recall Assembly Speaker Robin Vos.
The district attorney's office said the calls came from electors whose names appeared on recall petitions, but who said they did not personally sign the papers.
The recall effort is being brought on by supporters of former President Donald Trump seeking to force a recall election that targets Vos, who angered them when he refused to impeach Meagan Wolfe – the official who oversees the state's elections.
SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News
What to do
Victims of potential identity theft should email the district attorney’s office or call 262-636-3172 to register a complaint. That complaint should include your full name, address, phone number and which page number (bottom right corner) of the recall petitions you are referring to.
The handwritten copies of the actual petitions submitted to the Wisconsin Elections Commission can be found online. On that website, the district attorney's office said to click "Create a New Request" and complete the required form. The data will be sent electronically for free.
Meagan Wolfe, Robin Vos
Recall effort
Recall organizers said they submitted more than 4,000 extra signatures to the Wisconsin Elections Commission on Monday. It set off a timeline separate from already-scheduled elections, because organizers said it cannot wait.
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.
What next?
The elections 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.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.