GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A Brown County judge has denied Kanye West’s request to appear on Wisconsin’s presidential ballot.
Judge John Zakowski made the decision Friday, determining West’s nomination papers were indeed turned in seconds after the 5 p.m. filing deadline.
In his decision, Judge Zakowski determined that any amount of time after 5 p.m. is the same as being later than 5 p.m, and no constitutional issues were violated by the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
“In having to accept the factual findings of the Commission, and in its own finding of law that any amount of time after 5 p.m. is the equivalent to being later than 5 p.m., the court concludes that the Wisconsin Elections Commission did not violate any constitutional issues. The court must concur with the Commission’s findings that the nomination papers of Mr. West and Ms. Tidball were not timely filed.”
“The dispositive issue of law is the interpretation of ‘after 5 p.m.’ The court concurs with the finding of the Commission based on its own understanding and experience. While it may appear to be appropriate for a fact finding hearing, this court, in acting in the pseudo appellate court capacity, cannot relitigate the factual findings of the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Those findings include that West representatives entered the Wisconsin Elections Commission building after 5 o’clock and were not restricted in anyway.”
Judge Zakowski went on to say that the plaintiffs “dropped the ball” by not making sure the papers would be filed in a timely manner.
The ruling is likely to be quickly appealed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, according to reports.
The rapper filed suit against the Wisconsin Elections Commission in Brown County court following its decision to leave him off the ballot.
In addition to West, Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins is fighting to appear on the state ballot.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is handling Hawkins’ lawsuit after he too was denied a spot on the ballot from the commission.
In response to the two cases, the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a halt in the mailing of absentee ballots until it gives the go-ahead or makes any future ruling about who should be on the ballot in the critical battleground state.
Besides President Trump and Joe Biden, two other candidates will appear on the presidential ballot: Libertarian Party candidate Jo Jorgensen, and American Solidarity Party candidate Brian Carroll.
