Wisconsin Assembly leader fires the former judge he hired to investigate voter fraud

By Fredreka Schouten

Wisconsin’s Assembly Speaker Robin Vos on Friday fired the conservative former state Supreme Court justice he hired last year to investigate fraud in the 2020 election — ending a controversial probe that drew bipartisan criticism.

Vos first hired Michael Gableman in July 2021 as a special counsel under pressure from former President Donald Trump to relitigate his 2020 loss in the state, but the relationship between the Republican lawmaker and Gableman soured after Vos refused entreaties to decertify President Joe Biden’s victory in the state.

Vos’ move to end the probe came just days after he survived a primary challenge from an opponent that Trump and Gableman had backed.

“After having many members of our caucus reach out to me over the past several days, it is beyond clear to me that we only have one choice in this matter, and that’s to close the Office of Special Counsel,” Vos said in a statement Friday.

CNN has reached out to Gableman’s attorney.

The Associated Press first reported Gableman’s firing.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.