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Wisconsin Legislature: AB515: Bill Text
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AB515: Bill Text
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2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
LRB-4689/1
MPG&MJW:skw
2025 ASSEMBLY BILL 515
October 15, 2025 - Introduced by Representatives
Rivera-Wagner
,
Andraca
,
Johnson
,
Miresse
,
Ortiz-Velez
,
Roe
,
Sinicki
and
Stubbs
, cosponsored by Senator
Ratcliff
. Referred to Committee on Campaigns and Elections.
AB515,1,3
1
An Act
to amend
12.09 (title) and 12.60 (1) (bm);
to create
12.09 (4) and
2
939.641 of the statutes;
relating to:
criminalizing certain conduct intended to
3
interfere with certain election activities and providing a penalty.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill makes it a crime for a person to do any of the following with the intent to threaten the orderly conduct of an election, to interfere with voting or registration at a polling place during polling hours, or to interfere with in-person absentee voting:
1. Engage in loud, boisterous, or otherwise disruptive conduct.
2. Engage in harassing or intimidating conduct.
3. Engage in conduct that would cause a reasonable person to suffer serious emotional distress or fear bodily injury.
Under the bill, anyone committing such a crime may be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than nine months or both.
This bill also creates a penalty enhancement for the crimes of stalking, disorderly conduct, and harassment if the victim was chosen because of the actor’s belief that the victim was engaged in voting at a polling place, clerk’s office, or an absentee voting site, or that the victim was an election official or other municipal employee who was engaged in duties related to voter registration, voting, or canvassing. Under the penalty enhancement provided in the bill, a stalking crime that would have been a Class I felony becomes a Class H felony, and a disorderly conduct or harassment crime that would have been a Class B misdemeanor becomes a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense or Class I felony for a second or subsequent offense.
Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime, the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a report.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
AB515,1
1
Section
1
.
12.09 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB515,2,2
2
12.09
(title)
Election threats
and disturbances
.
AB515,2
3
Section
2
.
12.09 (4) of the statutes is created to read:
AB515,2,7
4
12.09
(4)
No person may do any of the following with the intent to threaten
5
the orderly conduct of an election, to interfere with voting or registration at a
6
polling place during polling hours, or to interfere with in-person absentee voting at
7
the office of the municipal clerk or at an alternate site under s. 6.855:
AB515,2,8
8
(a) Engage in loud, boisterous, or otherwise disruptive conduct.
AB515,2,9
9
(b) Engage in harassing or intimidating conduct.
AB515,2,11
10
(c) Engage in conduct that would cause a reasonable person to suffer serious
11
emotional distress or fear bodily injury.
AB515,3
12
Section
3
.
12.60 (1) (bm) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB515,2,14
13
12.60
(1)
(bm) Whoever violates s.
12.09 (4) or
12.13 (5) may be fined not more
14
than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than 9 months or both.
AB515,4
15
Section
4
.
939.641 of the statutes is created to read:
AB515,2,18
16
939.641
Penalties; crimes committed to disrupt an election.
(1)
If a
17
person does all of the following, the classification of the underlying crime is
18
increased as provided in sub. (2):
AB515,3,1
1
(a) Commits a crime under s. 940.32, 947.01, 947.013.
AB515,3,5
2
(b) Intentionally selects the person against whom the crime under par. (a) is
3
committed in whole or in part because of the actor’s belief or perception that one of
4
the following is true, regardless of whether the actor’s belief or perception was
5
correct:
AB515,3,7
6
1. The person was engaged in voting at a polling place, clerk’s office, or an
7
absentee voting site.
AB515,3,9
8
2. The person is an election official who was engaged in duties related to voter
9
registration, voting, or canvassing.
AB515,3,11
10
3. The person is a municipal employee who was engaged in duties related to
11
voter registration, voting, or canvassing.
AB515,3,14
12
(2)
(a) If the crime committed under sub. (1) is a violation of s. 940.32 that is
13
ordinarily a Class I felony, the penalty increase under this section revises the
14
classification of the crime to a Class H felony.
AB515,3,18
15
(b) Except as provided in par. (c), if the crime committed under sub. (1) is a
16
violation of s. 947.01 or 947.013 that is ordinarily a Class B misdemeanor, the
17
penalty increase under this section revises the classification of the crime to a Class
18
A misdemeanor.
AB515,3,23
19
(c) If a person has one or more prior convictions to which par. (b) applies, if the
20
crime committed under sub. (1) is a violation of s. 947.01 or 947.013 that is
21
ordinarily a Class B misdemeanor, the penalty increase under this section changes
22
the status of the crime to a felony and revises the classification of the crime to a
23
Class I felony.
AB515,4,2
24
(3)
This section provides for the enhancement of the penalties applicable for
1
the underlying crime. The court shall direct that the trier of fact find a special
2
verdict as to all of the issues specified in sub. (1).
AB515,4,3
3
(end)
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