As voters have already begun streaming to the polls, Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson this week raised doubts about early in-person absentee voting in Milwaukee and suggested his supporters in the city hold off from casting their ballots until election day.
But Johnson, who faces Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes in the Nov. 8 election, encouraged Republicans to vote early in other areas of the state.
“I would recommend early voting if you have a Republican election clerk,” Johnson said during a tele-town hall Monday night in a clip tweeted by the advocacy group Heartland Signal.
“I’m not sure I would recommend a Republican go vote in Milwaukee,” he added. “I don’t know about the bipartisan observation of those early votes. It might be possible.”
A spokeswoman for Johnson claimed the senator was joshing.
“Obviously the senator meant that as a tongue-in-cheek comment,” Alexa Henning said. “The senator was just in Waukesha Tuesday where he encouraged early voting. We are confident we have Republican observers and poll workers in place, Wisconsinites should turn out and vote everywhere, including Milwaukee.”
A spokesman for Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson pushed back at the senator’s comments.
“Milwaukee welcomes election observers — people who will see, first hand, that elections here are conducted with the highest integrity,” Jeff Fleming said in a statement. “Innuendos and baseless allegations of election impropriety undermine the public’s confidence in our elections. They harm the most important foundation of our democracy. Let’s stick to the facts. There is no basis to suggest impropriety by Milwaukee’s election officials.”