(The Center Square) – There continue to be questions about what will happen if Wisconsin’s voter ID law ends-up before the state’s Supreme Court.
The Wisconsin Republican Party on Friday questioned whether liberal judge Susan Crawford will be able to fairly judge a voter ID challenge, given her history of opposing the law.
“Crawford is backed by donors and groups that advocate for the most out-of-touch causes like abolishing ICE, defunding the police, removing voter ID, allowing biological boys in girls’ sports, locker rooms, and restrooms, and kids having sex change mutilation surgery,” the GOP said in a blistering statement.
But the record is clear that Crawford has a long, on-the-record history of wanting to do away with Wisconsin’s voter ID law.
As far back as January of 2012, Crawford was in court fighting to keep the state’s voter ID law (officially known as Act 23) from becoming law.
“It’s very much like a poll tax,” Crawford said while representing the League of Women Voters.
She doubled down on her opposition to voter ID just a few months later, saying it was “a great day for the citizens of Wisconsin,” when a Dane County judge ordered a hold on voter ID.
Ultimately, the law went into place. But Crawford’s opposition didn’t change.
In the spring of 2018 she penned a guest op-ed for the CapTimes where she called the voter ID law “draconian.”
“For over 23 years as a lawyer, I’ve worked hard to advance justice and defended the rights of Wisconsin citizens in court. I fought against Act 10. The draconian voter ID law. Laws that restrict women’s access to reproductive health care and threaten to punish doctors who provide that care. Attacks on public education and teachers,” she wrote.
Crawford’s campaign did not respond to questions about whether her views on voter ID have changed over the years.
And Crawford continues to say she doesn’t have to recuse herself if she wins a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and if a voter ID challenge comes-up.
Conservative judge Brad Schimel, who is Crawford’s opponent, supports Wisconsin’s voter ID law. On Monday, he said Crawford has made it clear that she will put politics above everything else if she wins.
“Susan Crawford refuses to take responsibility for heinous decisions. This is nothing new for her. Susan Crawford has always prioritized her political ambitions over delivering justice for survivors,” Schimel said in a statement.