File photo: WRN
The state Elections Commission is set to consider a plan this week that would notify Wisconsin residents who may not be registered to vote
The proposal, which the commission will take up when it meets on Tuesday, calls for sending out postcards to about 1.4 million Wisconsinites who have a valid state driver’s license or ID card, but who may not currently be registered to vote. “It’s basically saying our records indicated that you may not be able to vote, here’s a website you can go to…and you can find out for sure whether or not you’re registered,” says commission spokesman Reid Magney.
The outreach is required under a 2015 state law, which directed the state to join the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) – a multi-state effort to keep voter lists up to date. Magney says the state has to send out a mailing to every voter with a driver’s license or state ID card that is not registered to vote. Long term, Magney says being a part of ERIC will help improve the process of keeping voter registration lists accurate by tracking those who have moved in or out of the state.
The mailing will cost the state about $425,000, with a grant covering about a third of the price tag.