ACLU of Wisconsin Submits Open Records Request With Wisconsin Elections Commission Regarding Spanish Language Access for Voters

MILWAUKEE — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Wisconsin is seeking information from the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) regarding how the agency assists local municipalities in providing Spanish language access to voters who need it, as required under the Voting Rights Act.

The Bureau of the Census uses data to designate specific jurisdictions as “Section 203 jurisdictions” under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act. Section 203 jurisdictions must provide translated versions of instructions, assistance, materials, and other voting information available in English in areas that have a high enough concentration of non-English speakers who all speak the same language.

Wisconsin has six such jurisdictions – which include the cities of Milwaukee, Arcadia and Abbottsford, as well as the villages of Curtiss, Sharon, and West Milwaukee. These localities must provide voting materials in Spanish.

In a request sent last Friday, the ACLU asked for disclosure of numerous records related to Spanish-language access in voting dating back to January 2024 – particularly those concerning areas covered under Section 203. The requested records include the following:

Any policies, procedures, or guidance documents describing how WEC provides Spanish-language access for Wisconsin voters.

Records of Spanish-translated election materials provided to local election authorities through any means, such as templates or instructions, ballots, voter information, guides, notices, and/or forms provided in Spanish during the requested timeframe.

Staffing or training materials related to Spanish-language assistance, including poll worker or staff training documents either internal to WEC or provided to local election officials.

All communications with any Wisconsin municipality or local election officials in any Wisconsin municipality regarding compliance or non-compliance with the federal or state language-access requirements (e.g. Voting Rights Act Section 203), but especially all such communications with the six Section 203 covered entities:
City of Arcadia, City of Abbotsford, Village of Curtiss, City of Milwaukee, Village of Sharon, and Village of West Milwaukee.

Any reports, audits, assessments, or evaluations regarding Spanish language accessibility of election services, whether produced by WEC or a third-party.

Any available analytics related to Spanish-language records or materials on WEC's website. This includes, but is not limited to, traffic statistics, webpage views, downloads, user engagement metrics, or any other data collected or maintained regarding access to Spanish-language content.

“A strong democracy depends on all eligible voters having equal access to the ballot,” said Ryan Cox, legal director of the ACLU of Wisconsin.
“To that end, it is vitally important that all municipalities—but especially those covered under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act—provide voting materials in Spanish and other languages to those who need it. As the central, statewide authority in charge of administering and enforcing the election laws, it is incumbent on the Wisconsin Elections Commission to ensure that every municipality is in full compliance with the law and that voters are not facing disenfranchisement due to language barriers.”