3 candidates for the District 9 state Senate seat claim election fraud occurred in 2020

SHEBOYGAN - The Sheboygan Press reached out to the three candidates vying for the Wisconsin Senate District 9 seat in the Aug. 9 primary election to see where they stand on key issues.

Incumbent state Sen. Devin LeMahieu, who became majority leader in late 2020, is facing two Republican challengers, Jeanette Deschene and Ruth Villareal.

LeMahieu and Deschene shared responses on the issues while Ruth Villareal declined to comment.

Here's what the candidates had to say. Information about Villareal's views is from her campaign website.

Election 2022: Meet the candidates in the state Senate District 9 race

2020 presidential election

All three candidates say election fraud occurred in 2020 but differ in the extent to which they claim fraud impacted the presidential election.

The U.S. Justice Department has uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud that could change the outcome of the 2020 election and an Associated Press review of every potential case of voter fraud in the six battleground states disputed by former President Donald Trump found fewer than 475 — a number that would have made no difference in the 2020 presidential election.

"Two things can be true — Joe Biden is president, and the pandemic was used to justify horrible abuses of our election laws," LeMahieu said in an email in response to a question of whether Joe Biden won the 2020 election.

The state Legislative Audit Bureau’s review of the election “revealed numerous law violations during the COVID pandemic,” he said.

"Unfortunately, our strong election integrity reforms were vetoed by Governor Evers," LeMahieu said. "We may never know the full impact of the unlawful use of unmanned ballot drop boxes, nursing home abuses, or ‘Zuckerbucks’ had on the 2020 election, but we can ensure those violations never happen again in Wisconsin."

Deschene said she does not believe Biden won the election legitimately.

"I had a gut instinct that something went wrong in 2020 but we can’t responsibly live based on feelings alone," she said in an email. She joined a citizen effort to verify voter addresses in Sheboygan and "found many areas that left the possibility of fraudulent votes," she said.

"From illegal drop boxes to erroneous voter registration to nursing homes to the lack of cybersecurity across our country, I cannot confidently say the 2020 election was legitimate," Deschene said.

Villareal did not respond to the Sheboygan Press's request for comment but reposted a comment on Facebook this month that said election fraud "clearly affected the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election" and was listed as a speaker at a March "Decertify Wisconsin 2020 Rally" to overturn Wisconsin's 2020 presidential election results.

Deschene said she supports dismantling the Wisconsin Elections Commission, a bipartisan commission that helps oversee statewide elections.

"I believe the intentions were good when creating the WEC but they had issued illegal guidance during the 2020 election," Deschene said.

LeMahieu said he is "open to an alternative to WEC, but it needs to be a clear improvement."

"WEC made bad decisions in response to the pandemic," he said in an email. "We have revealed those abuses, brought lawsuits and crafted reforms to undo many of those bad decisions.

"Wisconsin has tried different options on how we administer elections. They all have strengths and weaknesses," LeMahieu said. "I have yet to see an option that would solve the current problems without opening our elections up to new, unknown risks."

More: Top legislative Republicans face primary challengers rising from grievances over the 2020 election

Abortion ban

LeMahieu said he will uphold Wisconsin's abortion law while Deschene said she would vote to change it. Villareal did not respond to a request for comment but is anti-abortion, according to her campaign website.

"When we talk about right to life, we mean it here in Wisconsin," LeMahieu said in an email. "We’ll continue to uphold the laws surrounding everyone’s right to life whether that is a mother, an unborn baby, a victim of violent crime or any citizen.

"Wisconsin can be a state that protects unborn babies and also empowers and uplifts women with life-affirming options and resources," he said.

Villareal declined to comment to the Sheboygan Press but praised the Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade in a June Facebook post.

"Abortion is not a health care choice. In supporting health care freedom, it is distinct from killing the unborn," her campaign website says.

Deschene said people "confuse legal issues with moral issues" on the topic of abortion.

"If you do that, you will not find a perfect solution," she said in an email.

"I would vote to partially repeal the law," she said. "Childbearing-aged women have grown up in a society that promotes sexuality, and abortion was unfortunately normalized. I would not support late-term abortion. There does need to be a level of responsibility."

School choice

All three candidates support school choice.

"During COVID ... families were left with few options if their schools extended their closure or forced masking policies," LeMahieu said in an email.

"It’s clear, now more than ever, we need to give parents more options and more say in their child’s education," he said. "That means the options to choose a school that best fits their educational needs and values."

Deschene said she is in favor of school choice.

"I understand there are cons to this but parents should have the freedom to choose what’s best for their children," she said. "School choice would encourage competition amongst the schools which could result in higher educational standards, and that’s good."

Villareal "support(s) parents as the sole decision makers of children's education," her campaign website says. "This starts with full school choice," the website says.

Gun violence

Neither LeMahieu nor Deschene said gun laws are a solution to gun violence, in response to a question from the Sheboygan Press about what the Legislature can do to address gun violence.

Villareal declined to comment.

"In Wisconsin, we’re working to address the root causes of violence by increasing investment in mental health services," LeMahieu said. "Additionally, in the 2017-18 session we instituted school safety plans statewide which included $100 million for schools to harden infrastructure and make safety improvements."

Deschene supports constitutional carry, she said.

"We need to deter acts of violence and I believe arming citizens is one way to decrease crimes," she said in an email. "I would also propose eliminating gun-free zones. I understand some may view this as a risk, but law-abiding citizens have a proven record of responsibility.

"We have to stop lying to ourselves that gun control has made a positive impact and be open to fresh solutions that do not target law-abiding citizens," she said.

Same-sex marriage

LeMahieu believes marriage "is designed and meant to be between a man and a woman," he said in an email, in response to a question of whether he would vote to criminalize same-sex marriage.

"However, as a matter of law, this has been settled by the U.S. Supreme Court and there is no legislator in Wisconsin proposing to criminalize same-sex marriage, nor could they under the current law," LeMahieu said.

Deschene said she would not vote to criminalize same-sex marriage.

"Our society changes over time and criminalizing same-sex marriage would be a step backwards," Deschene said. "Most Democrats and Republicans aren’t against same-sex marriage. It’s sad that the LGBTQ community has been taught otherwise."

Villareal declined to comment.

Wisconsin's Senate District 9 and how to vote

Wisconsin’s Senate District 9 covers most of Sheboygan County, the southern half of Manitowoc County and a portion of Calumet County.

In-person voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Aug. 9.

To vote, people must be registered and present a photo ID. People can register to vote online at myvote.wi.gov, in person at their municipal clerk's office or at the polling place the day of the election.

Reach Maya Hilty at 920-400-7485 or MHilty@sheboygan.gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @maya_hilty.

This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Wisconsin Senate District 9 GOP candidates on abortion, 2020 election