MADISON, Wis. — Well before Donald Trump took the stage to spout disproven election conspiracy theories on Wednesday evening, Wisconsin Republicans were two steps ahead, having promoted several election deniers to oversee elections this week alone.

Wisconsin Republicans have proven unwilling to dispel Trump’s election lies in the nearly three years since Trump lost reelection, having spent over $1 million on a sham election investigation that uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud. Last week, Republicans in the State Legislature even rejected an attempt by Democrats to prevent another Gableman-esque investigation.

Read more about how Trump’s election lies have been flourishing in Wisconsin:

• Bryan Steil Hires Trump Campaign Aide Involved In Arizona Fake Electors Plot As Top Lawyer on House Administration Committee. On Wednesday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Steil’s House Administration Committee has hired former Trump aide Thomas Lane, who previously worked for the Trump campaign in Arizona and reportedly attended the state’s false elector meeting in December 2020. Though Steil claims Lane was hired as a “junior staffer,” committee records show Lane was hired as elections counsel and director of election coalitions with a $155,000 annual salary.
• Election Denier Dan Knodl Appointed Chair Of New State Senate Committee Overseeing Elections. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu on Wednesday appointed election denier Dan Knodl to lead the state Senate’s new committee on Shared Revenue, Elections and Consumer Protection. Knodl was one of 15 Wisconsin lawmakers who signed a letter to Mike Pence urging the Vice President to delay certifying the results of the 2020 election to give state legislatures a chance to overturn the results in their states.
• At Last Night’s CNN Town Hall, Donald Trump Continued To Lie About Wisconsin’s 2020 Election. Given the chance to spew lies in prime time by CNN, Trump took the stage at last night’s “town hall” and repeated claims there were “so many illegal votes” cast in Milwaukee in 2020.

“Donald Trump lost Wisconsin and the presidency in decisive fashion in 2020, but as we saw last night, he can’t let it go—and neither can his MAGA allies in the Wisconsin GOP,” said Democratic Party of Wisconsin Communications Director Joe Oslund. “Whether it is Bryan Steil hiring a Trump campaign aide involved in the fake elector plot to a key committee staff position, or Devin LeMahieu appointing an election denier as chair of a new State Senate committee overseeing elections, Wisconsin Republicans continue to double down on Trump’s election lies. This isn’t complicated: Trump lost. By empowering Trump’s election lies and the liars who tell them, the Wisconsin GOP continues to pose grave threats to our democracy.”