Senate committee set to vote Monday on the future of elections chief Meagan Wolfe

MADISON – A key Senate committee is moving forward with a plan that could result in ousting Wisconsin's top election official less than a year before voters begin the process of selecting the next president.

The state Senate committee overseeing elections will hold a vote on whether to reappoint Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe despite legal opinions issued by the Legislature's own attorneys and Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul concluding her appointment is not legally before the Senate.

Sen. Dan Knodl, R-Germantown, scheduled a committee vote on Wolfe's appointment for today. He told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last Tuesday following a public hearing for her position that he was undecided whether to hold a vote and when.

The committee will vote by paper ballot on Wolfe's position instead of during an in-person hearing in the state Capitol, which means members of the committee will not be available to answer questions about their votes. Knodl's office will collect the ballots and report the outcome.

A spokesman for Knodl on Friday said Knodl is "fulfilling his constitutional duties" based on Republicans' adoption of a resolution earlier this year to take up Wolfe's nomination, which directed Senate President Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, to refer Wolfe's nomination to Knodl's committee for a recommendation.

But state law requires the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission to reappoint Wolfe with four votes, which did not occur. As a result, Kaul and the nonpartisan Legislative Council have issued memos saying Wolfe's confirmation is not properly before the committee.

The Legislature's attorneys have stated that an appointment or reappointment requires four votes of elections commissioners under state law — a threshold Wolfe has not reached because of procedural maneuvers made by the commission's Democratic members in an effort to keep her in the role.

Wolfe did not testify at last week's public hearing, citing Kaul's legal opinion that she is a lawful holdover and the Senate has no authority to act on her appointment. She did not respond to a reporter's questions about her position at a Wisconsin Elections Commission meeting Thursday.

At the hearing, clerks and Democratic WEC commissioner Ann Jacobs defended Wolfe as a respected elections official. Public testimony was dominated by individuals and groups who falsely believe in widespread fraud and who have narrowed in on Wolfe. In a letter to committee members, Wolfe explained that as administrator, she does not take votes on election rules.

Even after the committee votes on Wolfe's position, the full Senate would need to take up Wolfe's confirmation to approve or reject her appointment.

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, who argues that the commission's 3-0 vote constituted a two-thirds majority to nominate Wolfe to a new term, has refused to answer questions about whether and when the chamber will hold a vote on her position.

Hope Karnopp can be reached at hkarnopp@gannett.com.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Senate committee to vote Monday on elections chief Meagan Wolfe