RFK Jr. files appeal in ballot status case, even as thousands of absentee ballots have already been sent to Wisconsin voters

WATERTOWN, Wis.— A Wisconsin court granted Robert F.

Kennedy Jr.’s appeal to be removed from the presidential ballot in the state after his petition was denied Monday.Now, the Wisconsin Elections Commission has until Friday afternoon to file a response, even after thousands of ballots have already been mailed to voters.

Records show that clerks sent the thousands of ballots en route to Wisconsin voters to comply with the state’s Sept.19 deadline, but the election commission’s website warns that this data may not be complete or accurate, and ballots marked as sent may not have entered the mail system yet.

Kennedy filed on the Wisconsin deadline for independent candidates on Aug.6 but ended his presidential bid Aug.

23, opting instead to endorse the Republican in the race, former President Donald Trump.As The Post reported, four days later the commission denied Kennedy’s request to be taken off the ballot, citing state law that says the name of a person who files nomination papers and qualifies to appear on the ballot “shall appear upon the ballot except in case of death of the person.”Kennedy’s petition argued that state law treats third-party candidates unfairly and unequally, citing an earlier deadline to file for ballot status.

Clerks were printing ballots and delivering them to municipal clerks when Kennedy’s petition, which he filed on Sept 3, was denied Monday.Concerns from local officials about removing Kennedy’s name from the ballot include the costs and logistics of reprinting ballots and stickers covering Kennedy’s name, for fear these will gum up ballot machines on election day.In his response brief to the Court, Kennedy asserted that since state law allows for the use of stickers on ballots, it is up to the state’s election commission to ensure stickers can be put on ballots, including testing ballot machines.

“Kennedy is not seeking to create any more confusion than what the Commission has already wrought,” Kennedy’s...