Wausau mayor moved absentee ballot drop box into his office amid dispute over clerk’s deployment

Mayor Doug Denny of Wausau moved an unsecured absentee ballot drop box into his office on Sept. 22, 2024, saying he did so to prompt action on security and process after learning the box had been placed without what he considered adequate safeguards.

City Attorney Anne Jacobson told the Wausau Ethics Board she had advised both the mayor and the clerk in July 2024 to be careful about attempts to interfere with the clerk’s statutory discretion to administer elections, and she issued a formal written opinion on Sept. 26, 2024, addressing administration of elections in light of the July 2024 Priorities USA U.S. Supreme Court decision.

Why it matters: The testimony lays out how local election‑administration discretion, mayoral oversight and litigation risks intersected in Wausau after the Supreme Court’s Priorities USA decision; the matter prompted citizen complaints to the Wisconsin Elections Commission, the issuance of a formal city attorney opinion, and an ethics board closed‑session referral.

Jacobson testimony and written opinion

Anne Jacobson, who has served as Wausau city attorney since February 2009, told the board she provides both informal advice and formal opinions that are filed with the city clerk. She said she advised Mayor Denny in July…