State to investigate Wausau mayor’s removal of ballot drop box

The state Department of Justice will take over an investigation into whether Wausau’s mayor broke the law when he removed a ballot drop box from outside City Hall. 

A spokesperson confirmed Thursday that the state’s Division of Criminal Investigation is the lead investigator in the case. The state did not release further information about the investigation and did not respond to a question about the timeline for the investigation.

Wausau Mayor Doug Diny removed the ballot drop box on Sept. 22 after he discovered the city’s clerk had placed the box outside of City Hall. The drop box was locked at the time and had not been secured; it did not contain any ballots.

Diny, who opposes the use of the drop box, told WPR he wanted to “take a little bit of stand” on the issue. He had himself photographed removing it, wearing a hard hat and gloves. 

Under a July ruling of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, municipal clerks have “broad statutory discretion” to administer local elections. Diny said he was informed by Wausau’s clerk that she had received a legal opinion from the city attorney stating that she, rather than the mayor or the city council, had authority to place the drop box. He took exception to that opinion and has called for legal review.

Wausau Clerk Kaitlyn Bernarde filed a complaint of an “election irregularity” with the Marathon County District Attorney in response to Diny’s action. Before the state took it over, the Marathon County DA, who works closely with the Wausau mayor and police department, had referred the investigation to the Portage County Sheriff’s Office.

Amid intense focus on Wisconsin in the presidential election, the story went viral online and was picked up by national news outlets.

On Wednesday, a group of Wausau residents delivered a letter to a U.S. Attorney in Madison asking the federal Department of Justice to investigate. 

In a statement Thursday, Diny wrote that the “the drop box is in the charge of the clerk.”

On Monday, the ballot drop box was returned to its position outside City Hall and secured. It is currently available to Wausau voters returning absentee ballots. The Wausau City Council will discuss a resolution “regarding city’s use of absentee drop boxes” at its next meeting on Tuesday evening.