Fall Election

×

Expand

Voters go to the polls between 7 am-8 pm, 11/8. For polling places/ballot info: cityofmadison.com/clerk or clerk.countyofdane.com. 608-266-4601.

media release: The city of Madison Clerk’s Office put together a top five list of things to know for today’s General Election.

1. Your polling place may have changed since the last time you voted. To verify your polling location, visit MyVote.WI.gov/FindMyPollingPlace .
2. The address on the ID you use for voting does not matter. When checking your photo ID, election officials are verifying your identity. They are not checking the address on your ID. Just make sure you have an acceptable ID for voting in Wisconsin.
3. You can register to vote at the polls. If you are registering to vote for the first time or you are updating your voter registration, you will need to show the election officials proof of residence. Your proof of residence document may be shown on paper or in an electronic format, e.g. your online utility bill, bank statement, City of Madison assessment, or My UW account.
4. Your absentee ballot must be returned by Election Day in order to be counted. Election officials at your polling place will insert your absentee ballot into the tabulator to be counted. If you haven’t mailed your ballot back to the Clerk’s Office yet, you can take your absentee ballot sealed inside your completed absentee envelope to your polling place today.
5. You can view a sample ballot for your address before heading to the polls. There are several federal, state, and county races on this ballot. Additionally, there are referendum questions for all Dane County voters to consider, and some school districts in the area also have referendum questions on the ballot. Prepare yourself ahead of going to the polls by checking out a sample ballot for your address on the MyVote Wisconsin website.

We intend to give you the correct ballot. If we mistakenly hand you an incorrect ballot, please tell an election official before you insert your ballot into the tabulator to be counted.

Do not hesitate to contact the Clerk’s Office if you have a question or encounter a problem at your polling place: (608) 266-4601.

From the Urban League of Greater Madison:

We are committed to providing free rides to local voters to encourage participation in the upcoming election. On Tuesday, November 8, the polls close at 8 PM, and rides will be available from 8 AM to 8 PM. Below you will find other important information. 

Riders

One of our volunteers will give you a ride to and from your polling location. Though we can accept calls and schedule rides the day of the election (November 8), we strongly encourage all riders to call and schedule rides before November 8, so we can assign drivers. To schedule a ride, please call 608-381-3893, and provide the following:

1. Name
2. Pickup/Dropoff Address
3. Polling Location
4. Contact Number & Email Address
5. Pickup Time

 It's critically important to get out the vote this year, and we look forward to helping everyone roll to the polls on Tuesday, November 8!

Rides can also be scheduled online here.

From the Wisconsin Elections Commission:

The Wisconsin Elections Commission reminds voters to be ready for the fast-approaching General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. Here’s what voters should know:

1. Voters can check their registration status and find their polling place at MyVote.wi.gov. Voters who are planning to go to the polls on Tuesday should check the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s MyVote website, MyVote.wi.gov, to verify their registration, find their polling place and see what will be on their ballot.
2. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 8. Polling place hours are the same across Wisconsin, no matter where you live. Voters need to be in line by 8 p.m. in order to participate.
3. Those who have not registered to vote yet can still do so at their polling place on Election Day. Voters will need to provide proof of their residential address and an acceptable photo ID to vote.       
4. Remember to bring your photo ID to your polling place. Wisconsin requires an acceptable photo ID to vote, such as a Wisconsin driver license, state ID card, U.S. passport, military or veteran’s ID, tribal ID, a certificate of naturalization, or some student IDs. Anyone with questions about photo ID can visit the state’s Bring It to the Ballot website (https://bringit.wi.gov/) or call 1-866-VOTE-WIS for information.Those without an acceptable photo ID can get one for free at their local Division of Motor Vehicles office. For more information, call 608-266-1069. An acceptable photo ID for voting does not need to show the voter’s current address. Proof of residence is established when you register to vote.
5. Voters can still return absentee ballots to clerks’ offices and polling places. Ballots must arrive at the polling place or central count facility by 8 p.m. for them to count. Unstaffed absentee drop boxes are no longer allowed in Wisconsin. Most voters can return absentee ballots to their polling place on Election Day, although there are exceptions. Voters in 38 cities, villages and towns that count absentee ballots at a central location, such as the city of Milwaukee, must return ballots to their clerk’s office or the central count location. Some municipalities may restrict absentee ballot return to specific locations or the clerk’s office. Voters should check with their municipal clerk regarding absentee ballot return options. A list of municipalities that count absentee ballots at central locations can be found here: https://elections.wi.gov/central-count-absentee-ballot-municipalities. Voters who return absentee ballots to their clerk’s office on Election Day should do so as early as possible because the ballot must be picked up and delivered to the polling place by 8 p.m. Voters must personally deliver their own absentee ballot. At this time, the WEC does not recommend returning an absentee ballot by mail as it may not arrive by Election Day to be counted.
6. Voters with disabilities have additional options when returning their absentee ballot. Pursuant to the Voting Rights Act, any Wisconsin voter who requires assistance with mailing or delivering their absentee ballot to the municipal clerk because of a disability must be permitted to receive such assistance by a person of the voter’s choice, other than the voter’s employer or agent of that employer or officer or agent of the voter’s union. Contact your municipal clerk if you have questions.
7. On absentee ballots, both the voter’s address and witness’s address need to be clear and complete on the envelope into which the ballot is inserted. To ensure that your absentee ballot is counted, the WEC recommends voters pay close attention to the included instructions for completing and delivering your absentee ballot.
8. The rules about voiding your absentee ballot to vote a new one – a practice known as ballot spoiling – have also changed recently. In short, once an absentee ballot has been returned to the municipal clerk, it cannot be spoiled and must be counted. If a voter makes a mistake on a ballot, or if it is damaged, and the ballot has not yet been returned to the clerk, the voter can spoil that ballot and receive a new one. Voters are advised to check with their municipal clerk for complete details on the ballot spoiling process. At the polling place on Election Day, voters may also receive up to three ballots if they make a mistake or change their mind before placing their ballot into a tabulator, per Wis. Stat. § 6.80(2)(c).
9. To view a four-part video series on how elections administration works in Wisconsin, visit elections.wi.gov/101.

To prepare members of the public and media who will be paying close attention to unofficial Election Night results, the Wisconsin Elections Commission is reminding the public that Election Night results are unofficial and may not be fully available until the early morning hours on Wednesday, Nov. 9, or later.

Election Night Results Are Unofficial

In recent elections in Wisconsin, public misunderstanding of how election officials tabulate votes and produce unofficial results has fueled misinformation and conspiracy theories about Wisconsin’s strong, decentralized system of election administration.

The election results reported on election night are never the final, certified results. Election Night results are unofficial, meaning they have not been reviewed by County Boards of Canvassers or been certified by the WEC chairperson. In the days between Election Night and certification by the WEC chairman, it is normal for election results to change slightly as election officials conduct the canvasses to ensure an accurate vote total and complete the certification process.

All ballots must arrive by Election Day at 8 p.m. to count. Provisional ballots, however, an infrequently used option for voters who are unable to provide poll workers with photo ID on Election Day, can be counted until the Friday after Election Day. Provisional ballots are voted on Election Day but withheld from being counted unless the voter provides proper photo ID by the Friday after the election.

The purpose of a canvass is to account for every voted ballot and ensure that each valid vote is included in the official results.

State and national winners are not official until the results have been verified by counties and certified by the chairperson of the Wisconsin Elections Commission no later than Dec. 1, 2022.

No Statewide Reporting System

Election officials do not “call” elections on Election Night. Wisconsin has never had a statewide system for reporting unofficial results on Election Night, and there is no central official website where results will be reported. Most of the unofficial results the public sees on Election Night and in the following days come from the Associated Press (AP) newswire service.

Election night declarations of victory are based on predictions and incomplete results.

“Election Night results are unofficial and reported out by media in real time,” said WEC Administrator Meagan Wolfe. “These results have not been verified by the quality control measures in the canvass process, so the public shouldn’t draw conclusions until the results have been certified by Dec. 1.”

Election officials are not allowed to produce the results from each polling place and central count facility until after polls close at 8 p.m. and all votes have been processed. In most jurisdictions that use voting equipment, producing the results will mean convening what is known as the local board of canvassers, a public meeting in which the voting equipment will print a results tape, which will be read aloud, announcing the vote totals for that polling place or central count facility.

Municipal clerks provide unofficial results to their county clerks, who will post them to the county’s website. Municipal clerks must report unofficial results to the county clerk within two hours of the results being tabulated, and county clerks must post the results within two hours of receiving them from the municipal clerk. 

Unofficial Election Results May Not Be Complete Until the Early Morning Hours on Nov. 9 or Later

While WEC can’t predict exactly when election officials will complete unofficial results reporting, it is possible unofficial Election Night results will not be fully posted to respective county websites until the early morning hours on Nov. 9, or later. This does not preclude the possibility that unofficial results may be available sooner.

There are several factors that may delay the reporting of unofficial election results. One of those factors is Wisconsin law, which prohibits election workers from processing and tabulating absentee ballots until 7 a.m. on Election Day. The high volume of absentee ballots cast in recent elections, along with potentially high Election Day turnout, means it may take longer to process ballots on Election Night.

Central Count Cities Typically Take Longer

The public should be aware that it may take longer for populous jurisdictions that count absentee ballots at central count facilities, such as Milwaukee, Green Bay, Racine, Kenosha, and Janesville, to process their large volumes of absentee ballots. Historically, these jurisdictions have been some of the last to complete unofficial results reporting. The law requires local election officials to count ballots without adjourning until the counting is completed. Election workers are not permitted to stop the count and reconvene later.

“Election officials prioritize accuracy over speed when tallying the unofficial results,” Wolfe said. “Unofficial election results may not be complete until the early morning hours after Election Day or later. That doesn’t mean anything is wrong. It just means election workers are taking their time to ensure votes are counted accurately.”  

Don’t Be Misled by Misinformation About Central Count Facilities

Results reporting in central count jurisdictions is a common source of online misinformation on Election Night, with misguided rumors about late night “ballot dumps” sowing doubt about the integrity of the election.

Large cities that process absentee ballots at central facilities report their results a bit differently than cities that process absentee ballots at polling places. These cities report aggregate absentee results all at once, unlike most other places that report results as they are ready. Due to these factors, media compilations of unofficial election results may show a significant jump in the number of votes cast when the absentee results are added in from a large jurisdiction, such as Milwaukee. 

“If you see media reports that show a significant increase in the unofficial number of votes cast, this doesn’t mean anything irregular is going on,” Wolfe said. “This is just the reality of how it works for large cities that process votes at central locations.”   

Minor Election Day Disruptions Happen In Every Election

Minor disruptions happen in every election, but they’re not signs of nefarious activity. A potential increase in the number of election observers and of individuals challenging voters via procedures outlined in state law could contribute to longer lines at polling places or delays in unofficial results processing. The WEC expects local election officials to honor the rights of electors, observers, and challengers in the polling place. However, doing so may inevitably cause the process to take longer.

Issues with voting equipment, such as a tabulator or printer jam, may require repair and cause longer lines at the polling place. Local election officials are prepared for all these scenarios.

It is also possible, but unlikely, that other unforeseen circumstances, such as a power outage or other technology issue, could delay the transmission of unofficial results electronically, via modem or wireless transmission. In that event, local election officials have backup plans and can either hand carry or phone in results to their county clerk to ensure results are reported after the public canvass.

Any delay in the transmission of results does not in any way affect the integrity of the results themselves, which in Wisconsin are entirely backed up by paper records. Both the manual and electronic transmission of unofficial election results are open to public observation.