MADISON - Gov. Tony Evers on Monday ordered Wisconsinites to stay in their homes starting this week to fend off the coronavirus outbreak that is ravaging populations worldwide.
The Democratic governor made the announcement on Twitter three days after saying he did not think he would have to issue such an order but that he would do what is scientifically necessary.
He said he would formally issue the order Tuesday and it was expected to take effect within a day or so of that.
The governor did not say how long the order would last or how the state could conduct its April 7 presidential primary and election for state Supreme Court and local offices. Evers for weeks has been encouraging people to vote absentee.
The governor is calling his edict a safer-at home order rather than a shelter-in-place order, as California and New York have. Evers' phrasing is the same as what's been used in Ohio and is meant to get businesses to close and people to stay at home without terrifying them or making them think martial law is being imposed.