Barrett said he recorded a robo-call of his own that said signing a petition wasn't enough. Reports: Robo-calls lie to Wis. voters

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said his campaign is contacting Wisconsin residents to counter reports of a robo-call that says anyone who signed a petition to recall Gov. Scott Walker doesn’t have to vote in Tuesday’s election.

Barrett, the Democrat challenging the Republican governor, said he has recorded a robo-call of his own telling people that signing a petition wasn’t enough and that they do have to cast a ballot, WisPolitics.com reported. There have been a number of reports of Wisconsin residents receiving calls saying that their signature on the recall petition counts as their vote.


( See also: Full Wisconsin recall coverage)

“I recorded a robo-call telling people, yes, you do have to do that, and we’ll be sending that to people who signed the recall petition so they know they do have to vote,” Barrett said at a campaign event Monday night.

Meanwhile, Barrett for Wisconsin finance director Mary Urbina-McCarthy emailed supporters late Monday, writing, “Reports coming into our call center have confirmed that Walker’s allies just launched a massive wave of voter suppression calls to recall petition signers,” according to Salon.com.

Walker’s campaign pushed back against the allegation, issuing a statement strongly denying any connection with the reported calls.

“Any accusation that our campaign is making those calls is categorically false and unfounded. Once again Mayor Barrett and his campaign are trying to falsely attack Governor Walker with absolutely no evidence. This is a desperate move by Mayor Barrett to avoid addressing his lack of a plan to create jobs in Wisconsin,” the campaign stated.

Barrett’s campaign called for supporters to encourage their friends to get out to the polls and ignore the claims in the robocalls.

( PHOTOS: Scenes from Wisconsin)

“Urgent Action Needed: We’ve confirmed reports of voter suppression calls to recall petition signers. These calls tell signers that their ‘job is done’ and that they don’t need to vote on Tuesday,” the campaign’s Facebook page states. “This is a disgusting attack on our democracy and we need your help to fight back. Post this photo to your Facebook timeline and tell your friends that we need every eligible voter to cast a ballot for Tom Barrett — including recall petition signers.”

At his Monday campaign event in Milwaukee, Barrett called the robocall tactic “very, very disconcerting,” but said the source of the calls has not been identified.

“We’ve gotten numerous calls and people have stopped me and said they know of people who have been called and told it’s not necessary for them to vote,” Barrett said, according to WisPolitics.com. “Obviously, that is very, very disconcerting because of course, anybody who signed the recall petition does have to vote and it’s my sincere hope this is not a dirty trick or anything like that because it is so important for everybody, regardless of who they’re going to vote for, to get out and vote tomorrow. This is for the future of this state and to have people who reportedly are trying to discourage people from voting is simply wrong.”

On Tuesday, Democratic Wisconsin state Sen. Lena Taylor sent a letter to the Government Accountability Board calling for “immediate action, as in today, to begin investigations and prosecutions” into anyone involved with the robocalls. Making claims that people do not need to vote if they signed the recall or telling voters that the election is on Wednesday are crimes according to state statues, Taylor noted.