Wisconsin voters approved two constitutional amendments Tuesday on the administration of elections, including a ban on private money known as “Zuckerbucks.”
The other amendment requires elections to be administered by election workers only.
The term “Zuckerbucks” comes from the 2020 election, when allegations surfaced that money donated to nonprofit groups by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to help election administration officers was actually a front to help President Biden win the election. The money was used to hire more election workers and protect them against Covid, officials said.
The Republican National Committee celebrated the passage of the two amendments, saying that Wisconsin voters “have made it clear that they do not want Zuckerbucks or dark-money interests influencing their local elections.”
“The RNC and [Republican Party of Wisconsin] were proud to help drive this crucial victory and ensure strong poll-watching coverage across Wisconsin to ensure a transparent voting process. This win emphasizes that Americans support basic election integrity safeguards in battleground states like Wisconsin and around the country,” RNC Chair Michael Whatley said in a statement.
The RNC played a big role in the state’s vote Tuesday night. The committee’s integrity team filled 1,100 election observer shifts across the Badger state to “ensure transparency” at the polls. Attorneys for the committee were also ready in an “election integrity war room” to resolve any reported poll issues that came up.
Critics of the new measures say the only reason they have been added to the ballot is because of conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 election and claims by allies of former President Donald Trump that the election was stolen.
“Seizing on Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, Republican politicians in Madison are pushing a vaguely worded, bad-faith constitutional amendment to meddle in election administration and leave local governments with fewer resources to keep polling places open,” Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler said in a statement before the vote.
“Rather than work to make sure our clerks have the resources they need to run elections, Republicans are pushing a nonsense amendment to satisfy Donald Trump,” he said.
Sen. Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Republican, urged voters in a video on his X page last week to vote yes on both amendments so that “Zuckerbucks” would be banned.