Milwaukee has accepted more than $1 million in "Zuckerbucks" - the injection of private money into public election administration - just weeks before Wisconsin residents will vote on whether to ban such funds.
The city of Milwaukee, which previously accepted "Zuckerbucks" in 2020, has received a new form of the private funding over two separate grants just weeks prior to Wisconsin voters deciding whether to approve a state constitutional amendment banning "Zuckerbucks." Last Tuesday, Milwaukee accepted a $786,850 grant for the 2024 election from Cities Forward, a nonprofit that started last May, according to an IRS document.
Pdf File FinalLetter 93-1383745 CITIESFORWARDINC 05222023 00.pdf The grant includes funding for two new Election Systems & Software ballot tabulators at $146,375 each, a $37,500 text messaging service that would allow the city to contact registered voters and correct misinformation, 50 ExpressVote machines at $211,250 for early voting and as an accessibility aid on Election Day, and $147,000 for 210 Android smartphones for voting site directors to send photos or videos of equipment issues and more easily ask for supplies, according to Urban Milwaukee.
Milwaukee Election Commission Executive Director Claire Woodall told Urban Milwaukee earlier this month that the text messaging service is for the election commission "To make sure any information anyone in the city is having about voting is accurate and broken down in a way that anyone can understand," and that well-intentioned groups can still provide guidance that is inaccurate or difficult to understand.
CTCL poured about $350 million into local elections offices managing the 2020 election, with most of the funds donated to the nonprofit by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
Opponents claim the imbalance helped sway the 2020 election in Biden's favor, and as a result, 27 states have either restricted or banned the use of private money to fund elections, while at least 12 counties have also restricted or banned the funds, according to the Capital Research Center.
While Milwaukee is accepting a new form of "Zuckerbucks," Wisconsin voters have the ability to ban such funding in an upcoming election.
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