Summary

About

Contact

Email: Elections Commission

Locations

Elections Commission
212 East Washington Avenue
Third Floor P.O. Box 7984
Madison, Wisconsin 53707-7984
Phone: 1-866-VOTE-WIS
Fax: (608) 267-0500

Web Links

• Elections Commission
• Ballot measures

Registering to Vote

General Information

Who can register

To register in Wisconsin you must:

• be a citizen of the United States
• be a resident of Wisconsin for at least 10 days
• be 18 years old
• not have been convicted of treason, felony or bribery, or if you have, your civil rights have been restored
• not be incapable of understanding the objective of the elective process or under guardianship

How to register

1. Use our Register to Vote form below to fill out the National Voter Registration Form.
2. Sign and date your form. This is very important!
3. Mail or hand-deliver your completed form to the address we provide.
4. Make sure you register before the voter registration deadline.

Election Day registration

• If the voter registration deadline has passed, you can still register to vote in person up until Election Day. You can register to vote in person at the Municipal Clerk’s office up until 5:00 p.m. or close of business (whichever is later) the Friday before Election Day. You also can register to vote in person at your polling place on Election Day.

Voting Rights restoration

If you have been convicted of a felony and have questions about whether you can register to vote, visit Restore Your Vote to determine your eligibility.

Registration Status (form)

New Registration (form)

Voting

General Information

Voting as a Student

Learn more from Campus Vote Project about voting for students.

Overseas and Military Voting

You are a Military or Overseas voter if you are in uniformed services, living overseas OR a spouse or dependent of a uniformed services voter. To get registered and vote, you can utilize Overseas Vote Foundation.

If you have additional questions about elections and voting overseas you can use our state specific elections official directory or contact the Overseas Vote Foundation.

Voting with Disabilities

Wisconsin ensures that voting be accessible for individuals with disabilities, including non-visual accessibility for the blind and visually impaired, in a manner that provides equal access and participation (including privacy and independence).

Any voter who needs help at the polls has a right to assistance. By law, a polling place must be accessible to a person with disabilities. It is a good idea to check the accessibility of the polling place ahead of time. You may find the building not accessible or have trouble getting to the polling location inside the building. If so, you may request that a poll worker bring a ballot to the building entrance or bring a friend along to assist you. If your polling place is not accessible, notify your city, town or village clerk’s office and the Wisconsin Elections Commission.

You can have help casting your ballot if you have problems reading or writing, have difficulty with the English language or have a disability which prevents you from being able to mark the ballot or operate the voting machine. Ask for help when you give your name and address to the poll worker. Anyone you choose can help you, except your employer, an agent of your employer, or (if you belong to a labor union), an agent of your labor union. The person who is helping you must give his name and address to the poll workers and must sign the back of your ballot.

For help with disability-related voting questions or help filing a complaint, please call the Disability Rights Wisconsin Voter Hotline: 844-DIS-VOTE (844-347-8683).

For more information, you can also utilize the Wisconsin Election Commission’s Voting Accessibility page.

Early Voting

Early voting is available in the form of in-person absentee voting.

Each city, village and town in Wisconsin is responsible for setting the dates and hours of in-person absentee voting for their municipality.  To find the dates and hours for in-person absentee voting where you live, contact your municipal clerk.

Vote by Mail (Absentee)

Absentee ballot rules

• Any registered Wisconsin voter may apply for an absentee ballot and vote by mail.
• When voting by absentee ballot, you must submit a copy of a valid photo ID with your absentee ballot unless you are exempt from this requirement by statute (typically, certain military and overseas voters) or may have an alternative process to verify your identity. A list of valid IDs is available below.

How to get Absentee ballot

1. Use our Absentee Ballot Form below to prepare your application.
2. Sign and date the form. This is very important!
3. Return your completed application to your Local Election Office as soon as possible. We’ll provide the mailing address for you.
4. All Local Election Offices will accept mailed or hand-delivered forms. If it’s close to the deadline, call and see if your Local Election Office will let you fax or email the application.
5. Make sure your application is received by the deadline. Your application must actually arrive by this time — simply being postmarked by the deadline is insufficient.
6. Please contact your Local Election Office if you have any further questions about the exact process.

What to do next

1. Once you receive the ballot, carefully read and follow the instructions.
2. Sign and date where indicated.
3. Provide a copy of a valid photo ID, if you are required to do so
4. Mail your voted ballot back to the address indicated on the return envelope.
5. Your voted ballot must arrive by the deadline or it will not be counted.

Absentee ballot application deadline

• By Mail: 5 days before Election Day.

Absentee ballot submission deadline

Election Day.

Absentee Ballot (form)

Elections Alert (Form)

Pollling Information

Polling Place Locator

You can find your polling place by utilizing your state resource.

If you have further questions on your polling place location, please contact your municipal clerk.

Polling Place Hours

The polls will be open 7:00 am to 8:00 pm.

Poll Worker Information

In order to be a poll worker in Wisconsin, you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age
• Be a resident of election district for the 28 days before the election.
• Complete required training
• Be a student 16 years or older, enrolled in a high school with a minimum GPA of a 3.0. You may work with written permission from a parent or guardian and school principal

You can find more information on becoming a poll worker here. To sign up, contact your local Municipal Clerk.

Elections Commission

Source: web page

The Wisconsin Elections Commission is comprised of six commissioners who serve staggered five-year terms. Commissioners are appointed by the Legislative Leaders or the Governor, serve part time and receive a per diem of $115 per meeting plus travel expenses.

Commissioners elect officers every two years. Each term, the offices of chair and vice-chair switch between the members appointed by Democratic and Republican Legislative Leaders. The secretary is the clerk-appointee from the opposite party.