By Sandy Tolan for The Guardian
The Wisconsin I grew up in was mostly a pleasant, comforting place – a Great Lakes state filled with gently sloping parks, dairy farms dotted with Holstein cows, ethnic festivals at the beachfront, and families who lived in brick houses for a long time. Despite sharp racial disparities and income inequality, Wisconsin earned its reputation as a purple state with mostly civil, moderate politics marked by midwestern humility and decency.
OK, so that bucolic vision vanished a while ago. I haven’t lived in Wisconsin for years. But on Tuesday the last faded shade of purple was washed away entirely when the divisions turned downright murderous. After a drawn-out battle between a Democratic governor and Republican legislature, the conservative Wisconsin supreme court issued a last-minute order telling confused election officials to proceed with the state’s primary election – despite a pandemic.
With coronavirus numbers in Wisconsin up sharply in recent days, the court’s decision risks sending countless (Democratic) voters to early and painful deaths. In contrast to the 15 states which have postponed primary elections, Wisconsin alone will send voters to the polls in April.
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