Only a handful of days until the November 3 election, and Wisconsin officials have a simple message for absentee voters who haven’t turned in their ballot – act quickly and don’t mail it in.
The state’s deadline for getting a ballot in is 8 p.m. on election night. Reid Magney, public information officer for the Wisconsin Elections Commission, said the U.S. Postal Service has indicated it can take up to a week for a ballot to be returned. With time winding down, Magney suggested voters start researching when and where they can drop off a ballot over the next few days. “Does you clerk’s office have a drop box?” suggested Magney. “You know, where is your city hall, where is your village hall, where is your town hall? How can you get it to the right place? Those are the things the voters need to be thinking about right now.”
The urgency was heightened this week when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against an extended deadline for absentee ballots in Wisconsin. As of yesterday, more than 250,000 absentee ballots that were sent to voters across the state have yet to be returned. The Elections Commission also says residents should feel confident about the functionality of voting in Wisconsin, despite recent reports of partisan gridlock at the commission. Magney said local election clerks are still getting the right level of guidance. “We are ready for the election on November 3rd, we have been ready for all the absentee voting that’s been going on,” said Magney. “Voters have the information they need. Clerks have the resources they need to make the election happen.” Regulatory decisions from the agency are voted on by six commissioners – three Democrats and three Republicans. A recent report from Wisconsin Watch and ProPublica noted that the panel has deadlocked on nearly 20 votes this year – compared to only five times in the previous four years.
