Common Cause in Wisconsin (CC/WI), the state’s largest non-partisan citizens reform advocacy organization with more than 8,000 members and activists is calling on State Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) to rescind his appointment of Robert Spindell of Milwaukee as a Commissioner on the six member Wisconsin Election Commission (WEC).

On Tuesday, CC/WI joined other state organizations in this release demanding that Spindell be ousted from the WEC for outrageous, vicious and hurtful comments he made following the November, 2022 midterm election in Wisconsin. Specifically, Spindell, who chairs the 4th Congressional District Republican Party of Wisconsin, said in an e-mail (as originally reported by Urban Milwaukee):

“In the City of Milwaukee, with the 4th Congressional District Republican Party working very closely with the RPW, RNC, Republican Assembly & Senate Campaign Committees, Statewide Campaigns and RPMC in the Black and Hispanic areas, we can be especially proud of the City of Milwaukee (80.2% Dem Vote) casting 37,000 less votes than cast in the 2018 election with the major reduction happening in the overwhelming Black and Hispanic areas.”

“…this great and important decrease in Democrat votes in the City” was due to a “well thought out multi-faceted plan,” Spindell bragged, that included:

• “Biting Black Radio Negative Commercials run last few weeks of the election cycle straight at Dem Candidates…
• A substantial & very effective Republican Coordinated Election Integrity program resulting with lots of Republican paid Election Judges & trained Observers & extremely significant continued Court Litigation.”

There ought to be no place on the WEC for someone who takes such pride and delight in working for and implementing actions that result in the disenfranchisement of eligible voters anywhere and of any racial or ethnic background for partisan or any other purpose.

WEC Commissioners are partisan appointments but there are other qualified Republicans that Sen. LeMahieu could name to replace Commissioner Spindell that could secure the necessary confidence and support of the other WEC Commissioners and, most importantly, of the voters of Wisconsin. One possible and very qualified such replacement for Spindell is former State Senator Kathleen Bernier (R-Lake Halle) who retired from the Legislature last year after serving as the Chair of the State Senate Elections Committee.

CC/WI urges Wisconsin citizens to take action now to call on Sen. LeMahieu to immediately rescind Commissioner Spindell’s appointment to the WEC as well as to call on their own State Senator and State Representative to work to have Spindell removed from the WEC and replaced.

To get your voice heard in this urgent matter, please send a message to Senate Majority Leader LeMahieu directly using this simple letter writing tool.

Then, you can also contact your state senator and assembly representative by finding them and contacting them here: https://legis.wisconsin.gov/