KAUKAUNA, WI (WTAQ) – A number of Wisconsin Republicans are breaking with President Trump over his suggestion to delay the November election.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Majority Leader Jim Steineke quickly voiced their opposition to the president’s tweet on Thursday.
Hard NO. https://t.co/GYQFZRZcrX
— Jim Steineke (@jimsteineke) July 30, 2020
“Quite honestly, I was hoping it was a joke,” Steineke says, “We’re going through what we went through in Wisconsin back in April…I’m going to be consistent and say if we didn’t move the April one, we sure as heck shouldn’t move the November election.”
The Kaukauna state representative adds that he is steadfastly in favor of keeping election dates in place.
“We’ve never in my recollection, especially at the national level – even at the state level – moved a general election date. It just hasn’t been done. Through the history of our country, through the Civil War, elections have moved on as planned,” Steineke explains.
But delaying the election date wasn’t Steineke’s biggest concern. His eyebrows raised over Trump’s early claim that 2020 will be an inaccurate and fraudulent election.
“I find it troublesome that anybody would call into question the results of an election before it has happened. I think that sets a worrisome precedent going forward,” Steineke tells WTAQ News, “If people don’t have confidence in our election and our leaders are leading people in that direction because of the things they say, I think the country is in for a troublesome future if that’s the direction we’re going.”
State Rep. Jim Steineke, R-Vandenbroek (Courtesy Office of State Rep. Steineke)
However, Steineke does agree with the president over one part of his election suggestion.
“Just simply mailing ballots to every registered voter with no security measures in place is a problem. And that’s why I was glad at least that he differentiated between absentee voting and mail-in voting where you’re mailing ballots to everybody,” Steineke says, “If you don’t have in-person voting, you have no way to vote if you don’t get your ballot in the mail. That’s why it’s important to keep in-person voting and not go to an all mail-in ballot election.”
He adds that Wisconsin’s absentee ballot process is safe and secure due to measures like Voter ID and witness signatures, which help determine that people really are who they say they are when casting a ballot.
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