Groups may be sending out election mailers with the wrong information listed. Michael Haas, a staff attorney with the state Government Accountability Board, says the elections agency seems to hear about these issues “every general election.”
The errors may include an incorrect address for the municipal clerk. If that voter attempts to register by mail and sends it to the wrong address, it may get bounced around before finally reaching the correct office. Haas says if the open registration period has expired by the time the proper office has received the registration form, that person may have to provide additional information regarding their residency.
“These mailings also generate unnecessary work for municipal clerks because some people who are already registered fill out the forms and send them in,” says Elections Division Administrator Nat Robinson.
Haas says these mailers are often published by groups supporting a certain political party or candidate but the wording may suggest they originate from the GAB or a local clerk. Haas says his agency does not send out mailers; he encourages using their informational site Myvote.wi.gov.
AUDIO: Brian Moon reports (1:05)