Republicans challenge 5,600 addresses that may not exist

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

State Republicans filed a last-minute complaint Wednesday with the Milwaukee Election Commission claiming that 5,600 city addresses on the voter rolls may not exist.

The commission will meet at 9 a.m. today to consider the Republican allegation.

The Republican Party of Wisconsin checked the addresses of more than 300,000 people registered to vote in the city with a software program also used by the U.S. Postal Service.

Republicans found that 5,619 addresses may be non-existent and then visited a number of the addresses. They snapped photos showing vacant lots, a gyro stand, a park and spots between two houses where the address should have been.

A Republican Party spokesman said the GOP routinely checks voter rolls to purge files and was interested in the city of Milwaukee because of the large number of new voter registrations for this presidential election.

'George Bush lost the state by 5,708 votes, so these kinds of things do matter,' Chris Lato said.

A spokesman for John Kerry sharply criticized the move by Republicans, saying it was merely to prevent people, most likely those who lean Democratic, to vote.

'This is part of a consistent effort on their part to try and call the legitimacy of the electoral system into question,' said George Twigg, Kerry's Wisconsin campaign director.

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