Wisconsin DA investigating mayor's removal of absentee ballot drop box

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A Wisconsin district attorney is set to investigate a mayor for removing an official voting drop box.

Mayor Doug Diny of Wausau recently made a spectacle of removing a voter drop box from outside City Hall.

He posted a photo of himself on social media on Sunday, showing him carting away the metal ballot receptacle while dressed in a hard hat and gloves.

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In this photo posted to social media by Wausau Mayor Doug Diny, the mayor uses a dolly to remove the city's lone drop box from the front of City Hall in Wausau, Wisconsin. (Doug Diny via AP)

County Clerk Kaitlyn Bernarde reported Diny to Marathon County District Attorney Theresa Wetzsteon, who is now pursuing an investigation via the state's Department of Justice.

The voting drop box was empty and not in use when it was removed, according to local reports.

"This is no different than the maintenance guy moving it out there," Diny said Wednesday. "I’m a member of [the] staff. There’s nothing nefarious going on here. I’m hoping for a good result."

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Democratic Gov. Tony Evers called the drop box removal wrong and insisted that it be reinstated outside City Hall. 

"Drop box voting is safe, secure, and legal," Evers said on social media. "As elected officials, we should be working to make it easier—not harder—for every eligible Wisconsinite to cast their ballot. That’s democracy."

Residents drop mail-in ballots in an official ballot box outside the Tippecanoe branch library in Milwaukee during the 2020 presidential election. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The state's Supreme Court ruled in July 2022 that absentee drop boxes — such as those used in the 2020 presidential election — are not authorized under state statutes.

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The court ruled that the Wisconsin Elections Commission guidance encouraging their use was unlawful, but the ruling was overturned by the court's new liberal majority in July 2024.

The move, which sparked a protest in the city Tuesday night and anger among drop box advocates, is the latest example in swing state Wisconsin of the fight over whether communities will allow absentee ballot drop boxes.

More than 60 towns, villages and cities in nine counties have opted out of using absentee ballot drop boxes for the presidential election in November, according to a tally by the group All Voting is Local. Drop boxes are being embraced in heavily Democratic cities, including Milwaukee and Madison. Wisconsin has a total of 72 counties.

Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace and The Associated Press contributed to this report.