Matt Batzel: Big Win for Election Integrity in Green Bay

On Friday, Green Bay Election Observer Janet Angus won an important battle in the fight for transparent elections. A Brown County Circuit Court Judge ruled in Angus’ favor over the City of Green Bay, who had retaliated against her. This case stems from Green Bay City Clerk Celestine Jeffreys accepting multiple absentee ballots on election day in Spring 2022. Janet Angus bravely challenged this illegal acceptance, was rebuffed by the City Clerk, and then had the City of Green Bay try to intimidate her. Janet Angus’ court victory on Friday is a significant win for election integrity.

Wisconsin law (Wis. Stat. 7.41(1)) states that election observers have a right to “be present at any polling place, in the office of any municipal clerk whose office is located in a public building on any day that absentee ballots may be cast in that office.” Yet when Janet Angus followed this law in the April 2022 Spring Election, she was charged with disorderly conduct for pointing out that Clerk Jeffreys was not following Wisconsin law in accepting multiple absentee ballots from voters. Angus was not engaging in any disruptive behavior, interfering with voting, or intimidating anyone. When she saw wrongdoing, she went to the City Clerk, which is what you are supposed to do. Angus did this in a conversational tone of voice, keeping her voice down so as not to cause a disturbance. She asked if the Clerk had accepted 2 ballots and the Clerk admitted she had. Janet Angus then objected and challenged the Clerk for taking the two ballots in violation of Wisconsin law (Wis. Stat. 6.87 (4)(b)(1) says the absentee envelope is to be delivered in person to the municipal clerk). Janet Angus also filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Elections Commission for Clerk Jeffries breaking the law.

About 3 months later, the City of Green Bay charged Janet Angus with municipal disorderly conduct. Rather than address the issue the day the supposed incident occurred, the court transcript reveals that this investigation began weeks later after a city official reached out to the police department.

The initial case was tried in Municipal Court, where the Municipal Judge ruled for the City and found Janet Angus guilty of municipal disorderly conduct. So Janet Angus appealed the ruling, requesting a new trial before a Brown County Circuit Court Judge. This trial took place on Friday. Circuit Court Judge Tammy Jo Hock presided over the trial. After she heard the testimony, Judge Hock gave a directed verdict for Janet Angus, finding that the city did not meet their burden of proof of disorderly conduct. Judge Hock said “there was absolutely no disturbance.”  She then described the city’s actions “absolutely ludicrous” and opined that “this municipal citation was retaliatory due to the Wisconsin Elections complaint that was filed.” These city actions reveal a brazen attempt to silence and intimidate their political critics using city resources.

Unfortunately, Green Bay City Officials have taken many actions that have undermined the public’s trust in their handling of elections. The Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) responded to the complaint about accepting the absentee ballots and found probable cause that a violation of law or abuse of discretion occurred by Clerk Jeffreys. They directed Clerk Jeffreys to amend her absentee ballot acceptance policy, thereby proving Janet Angus was correct to challenge it.

In the 2020 Spring election, the city controversially reduced polling locations from 31 down to 2, creating a 2-4 hour wait to vote. In the 2020 Fall election, a Green Bay Press Gazette report found Green Bay City officials took over the running of the election, creating a hostile work environment and forced out the former City Clerk. In that election, Green Bay was the last municipality in all of Wisconsin to report its election results. The former Brown County clerk even said that election was “tainted.” In the February Spring Primary 2022, the city began counting absentee ballots BEFORE the public notice posted time.  In November 2022, a Brown County Court enjoined Clerk Jeffreys “from preventing or restricting members of the public from observing” early voting. This pattern of undermining the public trust is very problematic.

The disorderly conduct charge is part of a larger American leftist attempt to limit election observer access. The Left wants to dissuade citizens from observing how elections are run.

The irony is that the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteurs for Human Rights Defenders and for the Right to Peaceful Assembly and Association have explicitly recognized election observers, in particular nonpartisan citizen observers, as human rights defenders. UN member states are urged “to take all necessary steps to establish conditions…to protect them [election observers] from any violence, threats, retaliation, adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of their legitimate exercise of their rights and freedoms.” So Janet Angus should be applauded as a human rights defender!

At the beginning of another major election year, it is critical that the public has confidence in how our elections are run. A look at how the City of Green Bay has run their elections and retaliated against observers standing up for the rule of law, is concerning. Both sides of the political aisle should come together and celebrate a win for election integrity in Green Bay and continue to push for more transparency.