Dane County Circuit Court Judge Everett Mitchell issued a temporary injunction June 25 that permits municipal clerks to send absentee ballots via email to voters with print disabilities — voters who use assistance to read or mark a paper ballot — according to a Disability Rights Wisconsin press release.
The decision comes after DRW and the League of Women Voters sued the Wisconsin Elections Commission for prohibiting people with disabilities from receiving, marking and submitting absentee votes electronically, according to an April 16 press release.
The plaintiffs contend that certain voters with disabilities may only retain their constitutional right to a “secret ballot” if they can vote independently using assistive computer technology — rather than having someone else fill out their ballot, according to the press release.
Plaintiff on the case and voter of over 10 years Tyler Engel said that, as a person with a physical disability, he uses assistance to mark the absentee ballot bubbles.
“… My vote isn’t private,” Engel said. “I need someone else to do it for me. I’m lucky that I have people in my life that I trust to do it, but not everyone does — and it’s a major privacy issue.”
People with disabilities can face many other physical barriers to voting, Engel said. When delivering his absentee ballot in-person to a polling place two years ago, Engel said that the building’s ramps were too steep for his wheelchair, and the elevator did not allow him to exit without assistance.
Voters with disabilities may also encounter transportation challenges when trying to get to their assigned polling place, City of Madison disability rights and services specialist Rebecca Hoyt said.
“Some folks can just stop by a polling place after work and have what they need in order to vote independently and confidentially,” Hoyt said. “For people with disabilities, that often requires a lot more effort to figure out.”
Many people with disabilities must plan ahead to ensure they have all their necessary aids when leaving the house, arrange transportation and confirm if personal support will be there at the polling place, Hoyt said.
Madison’s Clerk’s Office has taken steps toward a more inclusive voting environment by providing detailed training to poll workers on how to operate accessible voting machines, Hoyt said. The machines are often made available to the public at events before election day so that people can become familiar with them in advance.
In the future, Hoyt said she hopes accessible voting machines will become more normalized outside of the disability community. By regularly using these machines, the general public can help secure their need and availability in polling places.
“Anyone can use them, and a lot of times they’re really convenient for a variety of people,” Hoyt said. “If something’s being read aloud to you it can really help with cognition, and it helps people who use English as a second language.”
It’s important that people with disabilities have a fair chance to exercise their vote because there are many political debates — such as transportation, reproductive rights, healthcare and employment — that affect the disability community, Hoyt said.
Hoyt would also like to see a greater representation of openly disabled people in the government.
Hoyt staffs the City of Madison’s Disability Rights Commission — a body of residents that elevates issues relevant to the city’s disability community and makes accessibility recommendations to the city government, she said.
Up to 27% of adults in the U.S. have a disability, according to the CDC. But, in 2022, only one person who is openly disabled ran for either local, state or federal office in Wisconsin, according to a database from the National Council on Independent Living.
“Voting is a very fundamental right,” Hoyt said. “… I think the idea that people with disabilities don’t have a voice in government should be very concerning for all of us.
On the University of Wisconsin campus, Engel, an alum, said the school could work toward becoming more accessible. Engel said it’s most helpful if students are aware and accepting of people with disabilities.
UW’s Badgers Vote and the Disability Cultural Center are student organizations that aim to increase appreciation of the disability community on campus and have held events educating students on voting rights and accessibility, according to the UW website.
“It’s a human right to vote and have your voice heard in elections,” Engel said. “If everyone’s voice isn’t heard equally, then we don’t have a strong democracy — and anyone’s rights can be taken away with that. Also, this may not affect you today, but … at any moment you can become disabled.”
The temporary injunction allowing electronic voting will remain in place for the general election in November, but the case is still open to consider the plaintiffs’ other demands — including allowing voters with disabilities to submit their completed ballots electronically, according to the press release.
