Contested political billboard signs spotted in Milwaukee and across the Midwest will be removed after criticism from community groups.

Clear Channel Billboards ultimately decided to take down several dozen signs reading “Voter Fraud is a Felony!” after they were flagged by some groups as discouraging voting among minorities in the Milwaukee metropolitan area, where the billboards were set up.

The billboard company put up the controversial signs on behalf of a private foundation that chose to remain anonymous.

Scott Ross, executive director for One Wisconsin, described the billboards as “an assault on the voters and the people of Wisconsin.”

According to Ross, the billboards worked to intimidate voters by specifically targeting voters in “minority communities.” 

“These billboards are not put up in Waukesha or River Hills, but are found in Milwaukee,” Ross said, noting that large amounts of democratic voters hail from the city. 

For Ross, these billboards do not reflect the oft-seen political attack ads that have dominated Wisconsin in the last few months, but he said they are “sleazier” than anything we see on TV and social media.

Ross said the ads attack “the very humanity of our democracy.”

“Whoever did this is a coward,” Ross said. “In television ads, you know damn well who is paying for it. Someone who is on the line and we know by their endorsement who is behind it. This is different, because there is no accountability whatsoever.” 

Mike Mikalsen, spokesperson for Rep. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, said he found it unfortunate that Clear Channel billboards made the decision to withdraw the signs, noting the move was “more politically correct than appropriate.”

According to Mikalsen, the billboards had nothing to do with targeting voting demographics in Milwaukee and instead pointed to what he considered a pervasive voter fraud issue in the city. 

“The Milwaukee Police Department has had reports in years past that there were problems with voter fraud,” Mikalsen said. “It’s not a shock to have [the signs] in a place where you have had problems.”

Mikalsen attacked pressures that persuaded the Clear Channel Billboards to take down the billboards and described the pressures as “intimidation [by] Democrats and liberal interest groups.” 

University of Wisconsin political science professor Donald Moynihan took a stance different from Mikalsen and said there has not been a significant amount of voters seeking to deliberately engage in fraud in Wisconsin, despite long-term interest in prosecuting such fraud at the state and federal level.

Moynihan likened the billboards to changes in election laws that make voter identification mandatory, noting that both target a problem that does not seem to largely exist. 

He also described the billboards as “disturbing” and said they targeted specific low-income Milwaukee areas and neighborhoods with a higher density of African Americans. 

“It is understandable that those living in this community will view it as some form of targeted intimidation,” Moynihan said. “Given the confusion over the voter ID laws, the billboard might be enough to create doubt in some voters’ minds to the point they decide it’s not worth it.”