Witkowiak says many recall signatures are bogus

Friends of James Witkowiak said today the effort to recall the south side Milwaukee alderman will fail because more than half the signatures on the petitions are fake, fraudulent or otherwise invalid, and many were obtained under false pretenses.
According to sworn affidavits and other documents submitted to the City Election Commission today, the attempted recall is the result of a “conspiracy” by certain business interests who oppose the alderman.
Witkowiak said he believes the recall is being driven by a combination of issues, including nightclub license disputes in the Walker’s Point area and the Mill Valley Recycling business that has been trying to obtain a special use permit to add an outdoor salvage facility.
“This organized conspiracy is a threat not only to me and the people in my district, it is a threat to our city and our way of government,” Witkowiak said. “It’s nothing more than a sham and a conspiracy to intimidate our city government in a way that is fraudulent and I believe illegal.”
Witkowiak said his campaign volunteers, aided by legal support, combed through hundreds of signatures and visited scores of addresses to find many of those to be vacant lots or buildings where the signers did not live.
Some people interviewed by Witkowiak supporters said they were told that the petitions were to recall Scott Walker or that Witkowiak favored prostitution in his district.
“First things first – we’re asking the City Election Commission to review these documents and throw out the recall,” Witkowiak said. “After that, I’m calling on the City Attorney and District Attorney to conduct a thorough investigation of who and what was involved here and consider criminal charges.”
Witkowiak said he is turning over copies of the documents submitted to the City Election Commission and examples of the fraudulent signatures to District Attorney John Chisholm and City Attorney Grant Langley for the investigation.
– BizTimes Milwaukee