MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A new constitutional amendment restricting who can work on Wisconsin elections should have little practical effect, according to a legal opinion issued by Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul on Tuesday.

Wisconsin voters approved a constitutional amendment in April that says only lawfully designated election officials can perform any work on primaries, elections and referendums.

It’s unclear how the amendment might change current practices beyond placing definitions about election officials, which are already in state law, into the constitution.

Dane County Corporation Counsel Carlos Pabellon asked Kaul weeks after the amendment was approved for a legal opinion on the definition of a lawful election official. Pabellon pointed out that parts of state law define them as special deputies who help nursing home residents vote, election inspectors and tabulators while other sections say they’re anyone charged with any duties relating to an election.

He questioned whether county and municipal clerks and their staffs remain election officials under the amendment. He also asked whether third-party vendors such as ballot printers could work with election officials since the amendment states only lawfully-designated election officials can do any election work.

Kaul wrote that the amendment doesn’t change the definition of a lawfully designated election official so the multiple definitions in state law remain viable. The amendment also doesn’t negate state laws empowering clerks and other election officials to run elections, he said.

The attorney general went on to say that the amendment doesn’t require election work to be performed only by election officials. Essentially, the amendment mandates that only lawfully designated election officials can control election administration, he wrote.

Kaul noted that Republican lawmakers drafted the amendment in reaction to grant money that came into Wisconsin in 2020 from the Center for Tech and Civic Life, a liberal group that promotes voter access. That year the group received a $300 million donation from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife to help election officials buy supplies and run elections at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic

Wisconsin’s five largest cities, which President Joe Biden went on to win, received $8.8 million, sparking outrage from Republicans. They accused Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich of ceding authority for running the election to a paid consultant who had worked on Democratic campaigns in the past. Green Bay city attorneys said the claims lacked merit.

Ransomware attack against auto dealers software vendor could cost some dealerships sales.

Nearly 160 Wisconsin auto dealerships still face disruptions from the ransomware attack against software provider CDK Global which handles much of their paperwork.

Nationwide, around 15,000 dealers have been affected by the attack that’s believed to have originated in Eastern Europe. CDK, one of the largest providers of cloud-based software to dealers, helps them manage vehicle acquisitions, sales, financing, parts ordering and scheduling vehicle service.

A group that claims they hacked the suburban Chicago company has demanded tens of millions of dollars in ransom, Bloomberg Business News reported, citing a person familiar with the situation. CDK intended to pay the ransom, but discussions were subject to change, according to Bloomberg.

CDK shut down most of its systems “out of an abundance of caution” for dealerships, said spokesperson Lisa Finney.

In Wisconsin, 159 auto dealers have been affected by the CDK hack and shutdown, according to the state Department of Motor Vehicles. The shutdown has caused some of them to revert to old-fashioned paper sales forms and completing documents by hand.

“Ultimately, they’ll still have to input all that information to CDK once they’re back and running, so that all the accounting gets squared away,” said Jim Tolkan, president of the Automobile Dealers Association of Metro Milwaukee.

“They can still do business,” Tolkan said, provided that dealers can obtain the paper forms.

The attack against CDK began last Wednesday. Despite attempts to restore services, another attack that evening caused further disruptions. It’s still unknown when services will return to normal.

On its website, CDK says it provides a “three-tiered cybersecurity strategy to prevent, protect and respond to cyberattacks.”

June is one of the stronger months for vehicle sales. If there are delays handling paperwork, the CDK outage could cost some dealerships sales, or at the least, a paperwork headache.

Wisconsin’s Department of Motor Vehicles says it’s provided an alternative for dealers to continue processing title applications and issuing temporary plates.

“The customer impact is minimal. In situations where the dealer would normally provide a permanent plate at the time of sale, they may now only provide a temporary plate. The plate/registration will be mailed directly to the customer from DMV,” the agency said Monday in a statement to the Journal Sentinel.

The cybercriminals behind the attack are linked to a group called BlackSuit, according to Bloomberg.

In May, a cyberattack against Ascension hospitals and clinics in Wisconsin and across the country reportedly involved a type of ransomware called Black Basta, according to CNN, which cited four anonymous sources.

Black Basta is a type of ransomware used to encrypt victims’ computers, rendering them unusable. Hackers can then extort victims by demanding money in return for access to the computer systems.

USA Today contributed to this report.

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) -A handful of Wisconsin female political candidates hosted a rally at Harbor Park in Kewaunee Monday afternoon on the two-year anniversary of the Roe v. Wade reversal.

Among the speakers at the rally were State Assembly candidate Renee Paplham, Second District Senate candidate Kelly Peterson, and Dr. Kristin Lyerly, a candidate for the 8th Congressional District.

All of the speakers discussed personal stories of how the ruling led them to run for office in 2024.

“I am a pro-patient physician, and a pro-patient candidate, and that means I want my patients to have the health care they need and deserve,” said Dr. Lyerly. “It’s so much more than an abortion issue, a reproductive rights issue, than a health care issue, this is about our rights and freedoms.”

Action 2 News reached out to each of the three Republican candidates in the race for Wisconsin’s 8th Congressional District for a statement, but have not received a response.

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