Wisconsin Assembly Speaker sparks outrage for telling voters it's 'incredibly SAFE to go out' and vote - while dressed head to toe in protective gear (8 Pics)

Wisconsin's Assembly Speaker has come under fire for urging voters to head to the polls on Election Day while dressed head to toe in protective gear saying, 'You are incredibly safe to go out.'

Wisconsin's controversial presidential primary elections went on today despite court challenges and concerns over the coronavirus' outbreak, with polls opened from 7am to 8pm.

Robin Vos, the Republican speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly, defended the election, saying heading out to vote was risking 'less exposure' than the grocery store and postponing the election made 'no sense', in video by the Journal Times. 

Vos, volunteering at a polling station in Burlington, assured apprehensive Wisconsinites that 'everybody is here safe' with 'very minimal exposure'.  

But critics have slammed the politician for claiming it was safe to be out in the midst of a nationwide lockdown due to the virus all while he was dressed in a face mask, gloves and protective gown.  

The Wisconsin election was allowed to take place as scheduled on Tuesday despite an executive order by Democratic Governor Tony Evers to postpone the elections for two months.

However, the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court blocked the order Monday night and said that the governor didn’t have the authority to reschedule the race on his own.  

Wisconsin was the only state in the country to proceed with elections scheduled for April as other states have opted to delay elections to prevent the spread of the virus.

'Welcome to the S*** Show!' wrote the state's lieutenant governor, Mandela Barnes, hours after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked a lower court ruling to allow more time for voters to send in absentee ballots. 

As a result, thousands of Wisconsin voters waited in long, congested lines outside polling stations to participate in the presidential primary election and many were seen ignoring social distancing orders.   

Vos was filmed urging the public that it was safe to come out and vote, claiming there was less chance of exposure at the polls than in grocery stores.  

'Actually, there is less exposure here than you would get if you went to the grocery store or if you went to Walmart or did any of the things we have to do to live in the state of Wisconsin,' he said.

Share

Wisconsin was the only state in the country to proceed with elections scheduled for April as other states have opted to delay elections to prevent the spread of the virus. Vos pictured wearing a mask, gloves and protective gown while working at the polls in Burlington, Wisconsin

Social media users called out Vos for claiming it was safe to come out despite wearing head to toe protective gear after his video from the polls was posted online

'It is no guarantee that in May or June we’re gonna be safer. We could be dealing with this in August or November,' Vos added. 

He explained that volunteers were receiving training and personal protective equipment that was mandatory to wear at stations.

Voters were given absentee ballots and those that didn’t could request an email ballot or visit a polling place to vote. Another option was to participate in curbside voting where volunteers bring ballots to people in their cars.

Vos was slammed by social media users for his optimistic message to vote, in light of the pandemic that's barreling towards its projected peak date in nine days. 

'It is absolutely safe for anybody in a Hazmat suit to vote today,' one Twitter user said. 

'If Speaker, Robin Vos really cared for fair election and the wellbeing of Wisconsinites, he would have moved the election date or allowed more flexibility with paper ballots. Vos’s actions are irresponsible and put Wisconsinites at all ages at a much high risk of infection,' another added. 

'This is so wrong,' one voter told NBC News. 'This election should have been called off. They're telling us to stay in the house and 6 feet from each other, but then, during one of the most important times, they're forcing us to come out here in a group. Stop playing politics with our lives.'

As of Tuesday evening, there are more than 2,578 cases of the virus in Wisconsin and there have been 92 deaths.  

More than 2,500 National Guard troops were dispatched to help staff the polls, where they performed the operations of poll workers and distributed hand sanitizer. 

In Milwaukee so many poll workers pulled out, the city's 180 polling stations dwindled down to just five, triggering extensive lines.  

President Donald Trump said Tuesday he didn't know anything about long lines of voters in Wisconsin primary.

'I don't know anything about their lines,' the president said of Wisconsin, where voters were forced to choose between their health and casting their ballot. 

Because limited numbers of polling places were open, most voters stood in line for hours and the recommended social distancing was hard to enforce. 

He said the long lines and concern about keeping six feet apart - guidelines from his administration - was Governor Tony Evers problem.

'You have a Democrat in Wisconsin as governor. Ask him. That's his problem. He should be doing it. Again, some governors fail. I won't let them fail because when they fail, I'll help. That's run by Democrats right now. It's run by Democrats,' Trump said.  He won Wisconsin in the 2016 election.

In addition to the Democratic presidential primary, Wisconsin was also holding elections for other local positions. Those results won't be released until Monday.