Wisconsin election takeover threatens our republican form of government

Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson has repeated the call for his state’s legislature to seize control of the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Although a takeover won’t happen with Democratic Gov. Tony Evers holding the veto pen, this proposal increases a dangerous trend of partisan legislative micromanagement of elections. This threat to fair elections needs to be spotlighted and nonpartisan alternatives pursued instead.

Fundamentally, state legislatures reflect the interests of the political party in the majority, so Johnson’s proposal is tantamount to control of elections by an organization fielding candidates, a blatant conflict of interest...