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CANVASSING PROCEDURES AND ELECTION DEADLINES Flipbook PDF
2011 WISCONSIN ACT 115 Senate Bill 381 Effective Date: February 21, 2012 CANVASSING PROCEDURES AND ELECTION DEADLINES Th
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2011 WISCONSIN ACT 115
Senate Bill 381
Effective Date: February 21, 2012
CANVASSING PROCEDURES AND ELECTION DEADLINES
This new law alters a number of elections laws applicable to school district elections. Several provisions modify election procedure dates and timelines to reflect changes made by 2011 Wisconsin Acts 23 and 75. Changes of interest to school board clerks are indicated. (Act 23 is commonly known as the “Voter ID Law” and allows individuals who fail to provide required proof of identification when voting to cast provisional ballots. The provisional votes of these individuals may be counted if the individual returns and provides proof of identification before 4 p.m. on the Friday after the election.) (Act 75 is commonly known as the “MOVE Act Law” and allows for the counting of any absentee ballot that is postmarked by Election Day and received by 4 p.m. on the Friday after an election.) A number of provisions of Act 115 change canvassing timelines to account for these late-arriving absentee and verified provisional ballots.
Canvassing Deadline Changes Act 115 changes the deadlines applicable to boards of canvassers. The Act provides that school district boards of canvassers must meet no later than 9 a.m. on the Tuesday following an election. School district boards of canvassers must complete their canvasses by 4 p.m. that day. Delivery of Election Materials Act 115 changes several provisions relating to the delivery of election materials. The requirement that municipal clerks must deliver all ballots, statements, tally sheets, lists, and envelopes relating to a school district election to the school district clerk by 4 p.m. on the day following the election is unchanged. The Act, however, provides that a municipal clerk must deliver certain election materials (i.e., any amended statements, tally sheets, and lists for additional provisional and absentee ballots canvassed under s. 6.97 (4) or 7.515 (6) (b), Wis. Stats.) to the school district clerk by 4 p.m. on the Monday following the election. The Act also specifies that county clerks must return specific election materials (i.e., any ballots, statements, tally sheets, or envelopes relating solely to a school district election) to the school district clerk upon completion of a central count at a county seat.
Posting of Provisional Ballot Information Act 115 requires municipal clerks to post information regarding the number of outstanding provisional ballots. The Act directs each municipal clerk to post at his or her office and on the Internet the number of electors who cast provisional ballots and, as of the closing hour for all polling places, have not yet returned to satisfy relevant voting requirements so that their provisional ballots may be verified. Municipal clerks must also make available to any person upon request, a statement of the number of electors who have cast provisional ballots at the election in the municipality that cannot be counted as of that closing hour because the electors have not satisfied relevant voting requirements. Recount Deadline Changes Act 115 changes the deadline for filing a recount petition and the date by which the vote margin between the petitioner and leading candidate is determined. The Act provides that a recount petition must be filed not earlier than completion of the canvass after any valid absentee ballots and provisional ballots are canvassed, and not later than 5 p.m. on the third business day following the last meeting of the relevant board of canvassers after any valid absentee and provisional ballots are canvassed. The Act also provides that the vote margin between the petitioner and leading candidate, which impacts the required payment by a candidate requesting a recount, is determined after canvassing of valid absentee and provisional ballots. Note: The text of Act 115 can be found at: http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2011/related/acts/115 ________________ Please Note: Two separate judges, on March 6 and March 12, 2012, have issued injunctions preventing the Government Accountability Board from enforcing photo ID requirements in 2011 Act 23. Due to these court injunctions, a photo ID is not currently required in order to vote on April 3, 2012. However, the Wisconsin Department of Justice has appealed these injunctions, and the appeals have been certified to the Wisconsin Supreme Court—thus, the situation could change before the election, or after the election.
Requirements currently enjoined from being enforced include requirements that: A voter must present a statutory ID to poll worker before being given a ballot. (§6.79 (2) (a), Wis. Stats.) An elector who appears to vote at a polling place and does not have a statutory ID must be offered the opportunity to vote a provisional ballot pursuant to §6.97. (§6.79 (2) (d), (3) (b), Wis. Stats.) An elector who votes a provisional ballot may furnish a statutory ID to the election inspectors before the polls close or to the municipal clerk no later than 4 pm on the Friday following Election Day. (§6.97 (3) (b), Wis. Stats.) A confidential elector is not required to provide a statutory ID unless the voter does not have a confidential voter card issued by a local election official. (§6.79 (6), Wis. Stats.) A voter who has surrendered his or her driver license is not required to provide a statutory ID, but must provide the original copy of the citation or notice. (§6.79 (7), Wis. Stats.)
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An individual assisting an elector must present the assisted elector’s statutory ID if such ballot is received at the door. (§6.82 (1) (a), Wis. Stats.) In addition, many provisions of Act 23 related to casting, verifying, and canvassing provisional ballots of electors who appear to vote at a polling place without a statutory ID and are offered the opportunity to vote a provisional ballot are also enjoined from being enforced. ________ Note: Statutory IDs permitted for voting purposes (See §5.02 (6m), Wis. Stats.) include: A Wisconsin driver Department of Transportation (DOT) - issued identification card; A military identification card; An identification card issued by a uniform service or passport; A certificate of naturalization that was issued not earlier than 2 years before the election at which it is presented; An unexpired driving receipt issued by DOT; An identification card issued by a federally recognized Indian tribe in Wisconsin; An identification card issued by an accredited university or college in Wisconsin that contains the date of issuance, the signature of the individual to whom it was issued and contains an expiration date that is no later than 2 years after the date of the election for which it is presented.
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