Judge unsure if virus requires changes to Wisconsin election

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday questioned whether it would be right to order an easing of Wisconsin's absentee voting regulations ahead of the November presidential election, saying the coronavirus might pose less of a threat to in-person voting by then.

Democrats and allied groups filed a series of lawsuits ahead of Wisconsin's presidential primary election in April demanding that Judge William Conley ease absentee voting and voter registration requirements to simplify voting by mail because of the pandemic. Conley decided to extend the deadlines for requesting and filing absentee ballots, but conservatives on the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the extensions the day before the election.

The plaintiffs renewed their lawsuits for the November election. Wisconsin is expected to be a key battleground state in Democrat Joe Biden's bid to unseat Republican President Donald Trump, who won the state in 2016 by just 22,748 votes.

Conley held a hearing Wednesday on whether to issue a preliminary injunction easing the regulations. He opened the proceeding by acknowledging that clerks will see a crush of absentee ballots ahead of the November election. But he went on to say that people have learned more about how to control the virus' spread since April, that infection rates could drop by November and that it's unclear if the risk of transmission will be as high as it was in April. Given that, he said wasn't sure he should interfere with existing state law.

“Granted, things could worsen. But it's possible things may improve in our state, particularly if people more universally accept the limitations necessary to prevent spread,” he said. “A federal court has a limited role in these matters and having more time, I'm not sure I'm at a point where I can say in-person voting won't be practical. I'm not...