How soon will Wisconsin voters know who won the Democratic primary for governor and other races on the Aug. 11 ballot?
Here’s the unsatisfying answer: It’s hard to know for sure. Results will start filtering in after 8 p.m. – when polls close across the state – but it’s anyone’s guess how long it will take for a winner to be declared.
Early information from Wisconsin’s major cities indicates absentee ballot processing is running quickly and smoothly, which means late-night absentee delays that can sometimes sway the results could be avoided.
“Election officials will always prioritize accuracy over speed,” Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe said Aug. 10. “Please be patient with our dedicated poll workers and election officials as they ensure that every single lawful vote is counted correctly.”
Some recent statewide elections have been called in an hour or less, including the state Supreme Court race in April, but that race had a decisive, 20-point margin of victory.
But if the Aug. 11 Democratic primary for governor is closer than the polls have suggested, we could be in for a longer night. The 2024 presidential election in Wisconsin wasn’t called until early Wednesday morning. .
The state of Wisconsin does not call races; news organizations like the Associated Press and data platforms like Decision Desk HQ have that role. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is also reporting out unofficial results.
The AP “does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap,” according to their Wisconsin election night preview.
Here’s a look at the factors that could shape what time races are called Tuesday night.
Absentee ballot processing going ‘smoothly’ in Milwaukee
One of the major factors shaping the timing of results? The number of absentee ballots in large cities.
Clerks cannot start processing returned absentee ballots until the start of Election Day. Efforts to allow clerks to start processing those ballots early, on the day before Election Day, have failed in the state Legislature.
One technicality: Absentee ballots are not actually being counted throughout the day – the same as other ballots. Ballots are not counted until after the polls have closed, either through equipment or a hand tally. Processing refers to steps like removing absentee ballots from envelopes and checking for the voter’s signature and a witness address.
About 39 municipalities in Wisconsin, including Milwaukee, use “central count” locations to process absentee ballots. In those places, results of absentee ballots and ballots cast at the polls might not come in at the same time, WEC explains.
Wolfe, the state’s chief election official, said it “takes time to compile unofficial results, especially in our larger cities where they have a higher volume of absentee ballots to process.”
As of 3:15 p.m., the Milwaukee Election Commission said workers had processed 16,000 of the 26,000 absentee ballots they had received for the election – about 61% done, with nearly five hours still to go.
“Central Count operations are running smoothly. The [Milwaukee Election Commission] will provide an estimate on when it expects to complete ballot processing later tonight,” according to the commission.
Similarly, Green Bay had processed 65% of its 4,346 absentee ballots by the mid-afternoon. A total of 285,742 voters across Wisconsin had returned absentee ballots as of Aug. 11.
The results you see Tuesday night are unofficial. Why?
The unofficial results reported by news outlets on election night come from the websites of Wisconsin’s 72 county clerks. Results are not compiled on a central, statewide website.
According to WEC, municipal clerks (who serve a city, town or village) have two hours to provide results to their county clerks, who then have up to two hours to post all results on their websites.
But those results are not final until they are certified. Municipal and county boards of canvassers perform the final verification and certification of races. The WEC chair must also certify the Aug. 11 election results by Aug. 25, and official state-level results are then published online.
Wisconsin does not have automatic recounts if any of the Aug. 11 races are extremely close. A candidate who wants a recount must wait until the last day a county board of canvassers meets, which is at least one week after the election, according to WEC.
From there, the candidate has three business days to request a recount acter WEC gets the last statement from a county board of canvassers.
Hope Karnopp can be reached at HKarnopp@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: When will we know the results of the Wisconsin governor’s election?
Reporting by Hope Karnopp, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Hope Karnopp, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
