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Voters who have already made up their minds about who they will be voting for on November 4 can start casting their ballots. Early voting got underway in Wisconsin on Monday, allowing voters to cast in-person absentee ballots at their local municipal clerk’s office for the next two weeks.
Clerks can offer voting hours between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays, although office hours are likely to vary widely around the state. A recent change in state law prevents clerks from offering weekend hours for voting. State election officials suggest checking with your local clerk before heading out to vote early.
State Government Accountability Board executive director Kevin Kennedy says long lines are expected at municipal clerks’ office around the state. He notes that “One in six ballots cast in November 2012 were early votes in clerks’ offices, and we expect to see similar numbers in 2014.”
Voters have already been able to request absentee ballots by mail for several weeks. As of Friday, the state Government Accountability Board says 69,028 ballots had been issued to absentee voters. The deadline to submit a request for a ballot by mail is Thursday, October 30. Ballots must be postmarked no later than Election Day and must be received by the clerk by no later than 4 p.m. on the Friday after the election.
Early voting will end at the end of the business day on October 31.