Wisconsin Recount Taking Longer Than Expected As Trump Campaign Watchers Reportedly Object To Every Ballot
Wisconsin officials say the election recount is taking longer than expected because some supporters of President Donald Trump authorized to watch over the process have objected to every single ballot.
As The Associated Press reported, election officials in the state’s largest county have accused observers for Trump’s campaign of trying to obstruct the recount. As the report noted, the president’s campaign asked for recounts in Milwaukee and Dane counties, where Biden won by large margins, helping flip the state blue again after Trump had won there in 2016. The recount is not expected to change the race in Wisconsin, which Biden won by more than 20,000 votes, but the outlet reported that Trump is likely seeking a court challenge that would overturn the results.
In Wisconsin, local leaders said their strategy appeared to be focused on obstructing the vote counting. At one table in the Milwaukee counting room, a Trump observer objected to every ballot simply because the paper had been folded, the news outlet noted. Some tables had two representatives from the president’s campaign, which the report said was a violation of the rules.
Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson blasted the Trump observers, saying they were breaking rules by continually interrupting the workers who were counting ballots.
“That’s unacceptable,” he said, adding that the Trump observers “clearly don’t know what they are doing.”
Other reporters noted that some watchers even objected to how ballots were stacked, despite officials following instructions for how to do so.
Claire Woodall-Vogg from the City of Milwaukee says a Trump campaign observer is objecting to the way the ballots are being placed in stacks. She says workers were following the stacking instructions. pic.twitter.com/BXiIvYk5uI
— Mary Spicuzza (@MSpicuzzaMJS) November 21, 2020
The report came just after the Trump team lost a major battle in Pennsylvania that sought to overturn the vote. As USA Today reported, U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Brann blasted their arguments in a 37-page ruling, saying there was no evidence submitted that would allow him to block certification. The ruling was seen as one of the sharpest rebukes of the efforts to overturn election results.
“One might expect that when seeking such a startling outcome, a plaintiff would come formidably armed with compelling legal arguments and factual proof of rampant corruption,” Brann wrote.
“Instead, this court has been presented with strained legal arguments without merit and speculative accusations… unsupported by evidence.”
Trump has refused to concede to Joe Biden despite media outlets confirming the Democratic candidate was the winner and some key states already certifying results. He has instead continued to insist that there was widespread fraud, though critics say neither he nor his legal team has presented evidence to back up their claims.
