"Election statute was in fact not just broken, but shattered by members of the Wisconsin Elections Commission," Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling declared.
The Sheriff's Office of Racine County held a press conference on Thursday to expose a deceased resident at a nursing home that "voted" absentee in the 2020 election. The Ridgewood Care Facility resident, named Shirley, died on Oct. 9, 2020, one month before the election was held.
Racine County Sgt. Michael Luell investigated the issue.
"Shirley was on severe cognitive decline, physically she was on decline, and to some degree, she was giving up on life, unfortunately, in her last days," Sgt. Michael Luell declared. "She didn't want to keep on current events. She didn't watch TV, didn't read, and was just at a low point before she passed."
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Shirley's daughter, Judy Westphal-Mitchell, filed a complaint alleging they took advantage of her mother with "diminished mental capacity."
"Judy was obviously concerned and asked, you know, ‘How can you actually do this?’ And she was informed that the employees would inquire as to how the resident had voted in the past, and they would follow those guidelines and vote accordingly," Luell said. "Judy, quite astutely asked, ‘Are you telling me that if my mother can only recall JFK, that the staff would have voted Democrat for her?’ And the answer is yes."
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"How could my mother know that her vote was recorded accurately, she couldn't see. The staff informed Judy that the staff hoped that the other employees would be honest."
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The Office investigated the issue and found the nursing home had an unusual surge in votes from residents during the 2020 election. Of the 42 families with members in Ridgewood Care Facility, 8 said their relatives did not have the cognitive ability to vote but still had ballots cast in their names.
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The investigation examined one nursing home, but Sheriff Christopher Schmaling said he expects it will lead to other inspections across the state. He is calling on Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul to launch an immediate investigation.
The sheriff accuses the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) of breaking the law. The commission is equally divided between Democrats and Republicans. They voted 5-1 during the pandemic – when nursing homes were limiting visitors – that municipalities across the state should not send special voting deputies into nursing homes. In standard years, they are deputized by clerks who help nursing home residents vote.
"That means the staff at the facility absolutely, positively cannot, by this law. assist in the execution of the vote," Luell said.
The Office's allegations come not even a week after the state Legislative Audit Bureau found no evidence of widespread fraud.
The bureau critiqued a range of the state’s elections procedures and requested the Wisconsin Elections Commission review and implement recommendations for improving the voting process.
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