BALLOT BOX BATTLES

Four Wisconsin Voters With Disabilities Sue Over Ballot Drop Box Ban

They claim that the state Supreme Court’s decision to ban drop boxes for mail-in ballots violates various statutes, including the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Earlier this month, Wisconsin’s Supreme Court ruled that absentee voter drop boxes are illegal in the state. Now, four people with disabilities are suing, arguing that the decision compromises their ability to cast a ballot and violates various statutes, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Voting Rights Act. Under the ruling, Wisconsin voters can only drop ballots off in elected officials’ offices. The lawsuit says that individuals with disabilities should be allowed to have others drop off their completed ballots on their behalf. As Axios reported, the plaintiffs allege that many individuals with disabilities would not be able to vote at all without such assistance. As more states enact barriers to voting, many of which target mail-in ballots, anxieties are rising. “I am extremely worried about the elections in November,” the director of the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress said.