There has been much news coverage recently about litigation involving the ERIC Movers List procedures, so I want to bring you up to date on the latest news. On Tuesday, January 14, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals District 4 issued two stays in the case known as Timothy Zignego et al vs. Wisconsin Election Commission et al.
The bottom line is that, until further notice, the Commission is implementing the process it approved in June 2019 for handling the ERIC Movers Mailing while the Court of Appeals is considering the WEC’s appeal of the Ozaukee County Circuit Court’s decisions in the case. No voters on the ERIC Movers List will be deactivated at this time.
WEC does not know exactly how long the Court of Appeals will take in its consideration of the case, and there are no specific deadlines for the Court of Appeals to act. It is also possible that there could be additional legal developments in this case and a second case that was filed in federal court. Once there are developments, we will keep you informed.
In general, the plan approved by the Commission in June 2019 means that voters on the ERIC Movers List who have not contacted WEC or their municipal clerk to request continuation will be listed on the poll book with a watermark by their names. The watermark will say “Have you moved?” and will cue election inspectors to ask those voters about their status using a script. Voters who state that they have not moved will be asked to sign the poll book to affirm their address and continue their registration. Voters who state that they have moved will be directed to reregister to vote at their new address, as required by law.
A memorandum explaining the detailed ERIC Movers List procedures is available in the Clerk Communications section of the website: https://elections.wi.gov/node/6581. WEC staff conducted a webinar about Movers List procedures, which is available here: https://elections.wi.gov/node/6569. Staff is also developing additional training resources, including a script for election inspectors so they will know how to handle Movers List issues on Election Day. We will announce the training when it is available.
If you have any questions regarding this information, please contact the WEC Help Desk by phone at 608-261-2028 or e-mail @email.