In-state politics leading up to the Nov. 7 elections have grown increasingly intense, especially the controversy surrounding the State Elections Board. Critics have called for the reformation of the board, and have proposed the idea of the Secretary of State position regaining control of the SEB.
""I think I could be a watchdog for ethics and for the State Elections Board again,"" Republican Secretary of State candidate Sandy Sullivan said. ""I want to encourage the people of Wisconsin to trust their state government again.""
In August the board ordered U.S Rep. and gubernatorial candidate Mark Green to return $467,844 in illegal contributions. After the ruling, the supposedly non-partisan SEB has come under further scrutiny for its political contacts with both parties, causing people to claim the board is under influence of partisan politics.
Sullivan and her opponent, 28-year Democratic incumbent Doug La Follette, have opposing points of view on how the office should be run.
""[The Legislature] set up an elections board to keep partisan politics out of the elections. Her suggestion is that it should go back to that,"" La Follette said. ""The trend is in the other direction—12 states have moved in the other direction.""
Previously, the secretary of state served as the state's chief election official. But in an effort to make elections non-partisan, the Legislature created the SEB in 1974 to administer and enforce the state's election and campaign finance.
If elected, Sullivan said she wants to move the State Elections Board and Ethics Board back under the control of the Secretary of State. Additionally, she has criticized La Follette for being an inactive politician in the 28 years he has served in office.
""He hasn't done anything in years and years. He's minimized the job down to fit his style and his life,"" Sullivan said. ""When was the last time anyone received a press release from his office?""
However, according to UW-Madison political science professor Charles Franklin, in a low-key office such as the secretary of state, avoiding any negative publicity is more important than generating congratulations for administrative tasks that have been routinely completed.
The normally unobtrusive secretary of state election has received more attention from the media than past elections, as a result of candidate Sullivan's book about her love affairs with former Green Bay Packers.
