Clark County ‘house in order’
On Aug. 25-26, the Republican Party of Clark County Wisconsin closely observed a “recount” of the 2020 election which they commissioned and was carried out by the county clerk. Members of the executive boards of both the Clark County Republicans and Democrats were witnesses.
Over the course of two days, all of the ballots from all of the voting precincts in the counties were counted and compared to the official results. The process was limited only to this effort, and did not even attempt to authenticate absentee ballots or examine the issue of the “indefinitely confi ned” voters, which has created so much consternation both within and without the state of Wisconsin.
Issues such as these would be settled by what is being termed as a “forensic audit.” The Clark County Republican Party passed a resolution earlier in the month calling for a state-wide forensic audit and looks forward to it being carried out.
For perspective, there were 3,492 votes cast by mail in the county in the 2020 election, 694 of which were “indefinitely confi ned.” According to the Wisconsin state government, 20.4 percent of “indefinitely confined” voters did not provide ID before casting a ballot in the 2020 election. This, combined with concerns about the integrity of how the election was administered elsewhere in the state, explains why many voters in Clark County and elsewhere are skeptical about the 2020 election results in Wisconsin.
The Clark County Republican Party earnestly hopes that these issues are addressed head on and resolved before the next election, as confidence in our election results is an essential element of keeping our republic healthy.
All that said, the recount carried out on Aug. 25-26 reasonably establishes that the various voting precincts in Clark County, Wisconsin did faithfully and accurately convey the tallies of the ballots that was in the official report. In the vast majority of the approximately 50 voting precincts in the county, there existed an actual ballot consistent with each of the votes reported for Trump, Biden, and the other presidential candidates.
In short, the various voting precincts of Clark County Wisconsin accurately and competently administered the 2020 election.
As one might expect, given the level of scrutiny applied, there were some very minor discrepancies identified, some of which were due to individual voters casting ambiguous ballots, and occasionally some “clerical” errors. The Republican Party of Clark County Wisconsin is confi dent that these did not materially impact the outcome of the county election and likewise confident that these instances will be used to further educate poll workers and voters themselves.
It has been said by some that given the fact that Trump won the 2020 election in the county by a 2 to 1 majority, there was no sense in recounting the ballots. To the contrary, the Clark County Republicans believe that it is time for citizens to put into action Reagan’s maxim, “Trust, but verify.” On top of that, with so much suspicion surrounding the results elsewhere in the state and in other states, which the citizens of Clark County are powerless to do anything about, we can at least do what we can, which is to ensure that our own house is in order.
While conceding that there were important limits on what this recount could show and not show, the Clark County Republicans are glad to report that this part of the house, at least, is in order.
The Republican Party of Clark County, Wisconsin, eagerly awaits the thorough reckoning that is due elsewhere in the state. After all, we all know (don’t we?) where the biggest problems lie: chiefly in Milwaukee, Green Bay, and Madison.
