Madison Teachers, Inc. v. James R. Scott, 906 N.W.2d 436

WERC administered a 2015 annual certification election for Madison school-district employees conducted remotely over 20 days (phone/internet) using a third‑party vendor.
Madison Teachers, Inc. (MTI) requested, during the election, lists of employees who had voted as of specific dates; WERC chairman/records custodian James Scott denied the requests until after the election ended.
Scott denied disclosure citing (1) lack of possession (third‑party vendor), (2) secrecy of the ballot, and (3) a common‑law balancing test: preventing voter intimidation/coercion during an ongoing election outweighed openness.
MTI sued under the public records law for mandamus, statutory damages, and fees; the circuit court granted summary judgment to MTI and awarded fees and damages.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court, on bypass, reviewed whether the public interest in preventing voter intimidation during an ongoing certification election outweighed the presumption of public access and reversed the circuit court.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the public interest in preventing voter intimidation during an ongoing certification election outweighs the presumption of open public records so as to permit withholding names of persons who had voted before the election concluded	MTI: Strong presumption of openness; disclosure does not reveal individual votes and is necessary for public oversight of electronic elections; no evidence MTI would intimidate voters	Scott/WERC: Disclosure while balloting was ongoing would enable targeted pressure on non‑voters and threaten secret‑ballot integrity; past coercion complaints show a risk sufficient to outweigh openness	Court: Scott lawfully balanced interests; here the public interest in elections free from intimidation/coercion outweighed the public interest in disclosure during the ongoing election; disclosure after the election was appropriate

Burson v. Freeman, 504 U.S. 191 (1992) (upholding election‑zone restriction to prevent voter intimidation and explaining secret ballot history and compelling interest in protecting free vote)
Democratic Party of Wis. v. DOJ, 372 Wis. 2d 460 (2016) (discusses custodian burden when invoking a balancing test under Wisconsin public records law)
John K. MacIver Inst. for Pub. Policy, Inc. v. Erpenbach, 354 Wis. 2d 61 (2014) (custodian must show a reasonable probability of harm; generalized fears insufficient)
Osborn v. Bd. of Regents of Univ. of Wis. Sys., 254 Wis. 2d 266 (2002) (recognizes strong presumption of open access to public records)
WERC v. City of Evansville, 69 Wis. 2d 140 (1975) (election coercion as a prohibited practice; evidentiary inquiry into actual intimidation)
Nichols v. Bennett, 199 Wis. 2d 268 (1996) (public records law advances public oversight and transparency)