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Did a member of the Wisconsin Elections Commission say she was a partisan appointee?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
YES

Ann Jacobs, a commissioner on the Wisconsin Elections Commission, stated in a tweet that she is a partisan appointee to the commission, in response to conservative radio show host Dan O'Donnell. O'Donnell had tweeted that Jacobs' criticism of GOP gubernatorial candidate Tim Michels put into question whether the commission could "be fair to Republicans."

As designed by the Republican-run Legislature in 2015, the WEC has three Democratic appointees, three Republican appointees and a nonpartisan administrator. The WEC says the appointees are there to represent their respective parties. All appointments are subject to confirmation in the state Senate. Bewley was appointed by Democratic Senate Minority Leader Janet Bewley. 

The WEC has increasingly reached stalemates along party lines, with both Democratic and Republican members often taking cues from their party leaders before voting on issues, as Wisconsin Watch reported in October 2020. 

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
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Wisconsin Watch, the news arm of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, increases the quality and quantity of investigative reporting in Wisconsin, while training current and future investigative journalists. Its work fosters an informed citizenry and strengthens democracy.
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