MADISON, Wis. -- The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate voted Thursday to fire the battleground state's nonpartisan top elections official, prompting a legal challenge from Democrats who say the vote was illegitimate.
Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul said in a lawsuit that Senate Republicans don't have the authority to oust Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe and accused them of attacking the state's elections.
It's the latest in a whirlwind of deep partisan divisions in Wisconsin, where Republicans who control the Legislature are threatening to impeach a newly elected Supreme Court justice before she's even heard a case. They're also floating plans to overhaul the state's electoral maps before the high court can toss out current boundaries that favor the GOP.
The fight over who will lead the elections agency stems from persistent lies about the 2020 election and creates instability ahead of the 2024 presidential race for the state's more than 1,800 local clerks who actually run elections.
Wolfe has been the subject of conspiracy theories and target for threats from election skeptics who falsely claim she was part of a plan to rig the 2020 vote in Wisconsin, and GOP leaders cited concerns from those skeptics in justifying Thursday's 22-11 vote along party lines.
She said Thursday she will not "bend to political pressure" and will continue to serve as administrator at least through the end of the 2024 election unless a court rules otherwise or the elections commission votes to remove her.
"The Senate's vote today to remove me is not a referendum on the job I do, but rather a reaction to not achieving the political outcome they desire," Wolfe said. "The political outcome they desired is to have someone in this position of their own choosing that would bend to those political pressures."
"Wisconsinites have expressed concerns with the administration of elections both here in Wisconsin and nationally," said Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu. "We need to rebuild faith in Wisconsin's elections."
But numerous reviews have found that the 2020 election in Wisconsin was fair and the results were accurate. Biden defeated Trump in 2020 by nearly 21,000 votes in Wisconsin, an outcome that has withstood two partial recounts, a nonpartisan audit, a conservative law firm's review, and multiple state and federal lawsuits.
Election observers have voiced concerns that replacing Wolfe with a less experienced administrator or continuing to dispute her position ahead of the 2024 contest could create greater instability in a high-stakes presidential race where election workers expect to face unrelenting pressure, harassment and threats.
"Wisconsin Republicans' attempt to illegally fire Wisconsin's elections administrator without cause today shows they are continuing to escalate efforts to sow distrust and disinformation about our elections, denigrate our clerks, poll workers, and election administrators, and undermine basic tenets of our democracy, including the peaceful transfer of power," Democratic Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.
At Evers' request, Kaul sued GOP legislative leaders and asked a judge to rule that the Senate's vote has no legal effect and that Wolfe will remain in charge of the elections commission. Meanwhile, Republicans introduced a resolution calling on the elections commission to appoint an interim administrator to replace her.
Senate Democratic Leader Melissa Agard, D-Madison, speaks at a news conference, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate was set to vote Thursday on firing the battleground state's top elections official — a move that was denounced by Democrats as illegitimate and is expected to draw a legal battle. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)
State Sen. Duey Stroebel, R-Saukville, listens during debate about taking a step toward firing Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)
Senate President Chris Kapena, R-Delafield, right, speaks with state Sen. Patrick Testin R-Stevens Point during debate about taking a step toward firing Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)
FILE - Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe poses for a photograph outside the Wisconsin Capitol building, Aug. 31, 2020, in Madison, Wis. The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate is set to vote Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, on firing the battleground state's top elections official — a move that was denounced by Democrats and is expected to draw a legal battle. (Ruthie Hauge/Wisconsin State Journal via AP, File)
Members of the State Senate listen to a prayer at the opening of their session, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate was set to vote Thursday on firing the battleground state's top elections official — a move that was denounced by Democrats as illegitimate and is expected to draw a legal battle. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)
Senate Democratic Leader Melissa Agard, D-Madison, speaks in the State Senate, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. At right is Jeff Smith, D-Brunswick. The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate was set to vote Thursday on firing the battleground state's top elections official — a move that was denounced by Democrats as illegitimate and is expected to draw a legal battle. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)
People in the State Senate gallery listen to debate about taking a step toward firing Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)