Several state recall votes are scheduled for the next couple weeks, but interest groups hoping to lock in votes now are sending out absentee applications to voters. Careless processing means some may never see a ballot. Only a voter’s own city clerk can issue them an absentee ballot. The problem this summer is that parties and interest groups sending out the apps are sending some to the wrong cities.
“There’s no indication on these applications, the ones that are not officially from the GAB, as to what municipality you belong to,” said Amy Duley, clerk of the Town of Pine River near Merrill.
Duley is receiving absentee applications nearly every day. Some come on the official Wisconsin Government Accountability Board form, but others come on paperwork solicited by pro-life, pro-gun, and other interest groups. The problem is that the interest group processing centers are sending applications for cities like Merrill to Pine River.
“It’s total frustration,” said Duley. “It means the person might not get their ballot number one, and number two it’s an added expense for my township to send these to the proper clerks, if I can figure out where they belong.”
It’s not just a problem in north central Wisconsin, and the state has taken notice. The GAB is warning against the alternative applications.
“It goes to a central processing place where they get it and then they are supposed to distribute it to the clerks,” said Reid Magney of the GAB. “The problem is that when they put a clerk’s name on there they don’t always get that right.”
Magney says wrong election dates listed on the applications isn’t the only issue this summer.
“We’ve seen instances of wrong addresses,” said Magney. “Wisconsin has a couple of different Towns of Washington, a couple of different Towns of Franklin, it might go to the wrong place.”
Full Article: Interest Groups Mail Ballot Apps to Wrong Cities.