7.30(6)(a)(a) The appointed election officials shall hold office for 2 years and until their successors are appointed and qualified. They shall serve at every election held in their ward during their term of office.
7.30(6)(b)
(b) Prior to the first election following the appointment of the inspectors, the inspectors at each polling place shall elect one of their number to act as chief inspector. The chief inspector shall hold the position for the remainder of the term, except that whenever wards are combined or separated under
s. 5.15 (6) (b), the inspectors shall elect a new chief inspector. If a vacancy occurs in the position of chief inspector, the municipal clerk shall appoint one of the other inspectors to fill the vacancy.
7.30(6)(c)
(c) If any election official lacks the qualifications set forth in this section, fails to attend training sessions required under
s. 7.15 (1) (e) unless excused therefrom, is guilty of neglecting his or her official duties or commits official misconduct, the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners shall summarily remove the official from office and the vacancy shall be filled under
sub. (2) (b).
7.30 History
History: 1971 c. 242;
1971 c. 304 s.
29 (1), (2);
1971 c. 336;
1973 c. 280,
334;
1975 c. 93,
101;
1977 c. 394,
427,
447;
1979 c. 89,
260,
355;
1983 a. 183,
484,
538;
1985 a. 131 s.
3;
1985 a. 304,
332;
1987 a. 391;
1989 a. 192,
359;
1995 a. 16 s.
2.
7.32
7.32
Change of election official numbers. Notwithstanding
s. 7.30 (1), the governing body or board of election commissioners of any municipality may by resolution reduce the number of election officials and modify or rescind any similar previous action. No such action may reduce the number of officials at a polling place to less than 3.
7.32 History
History: 1977 c. 427;
1979 c. 260 s.
46; Stats. 1979 s. 7.32;
1983 a. 484;
1985 a. 304.
7.33
7.33
Service as an election official. 7.33(2)
(2) Service as an election official under this chapter shall be mandatory upon all qualified electors appointed, during the full 2-year term, after which they shall be exempt from further service as an election official, under this chapter, until 3 terms of 2 years each have elapsed. Municipal clerks may grant exemptions from service at any time.
7.33(3)
(3) Every employer shall grant to each employe who is appointed to serve as an election official a leave of absence for the entire 24-hour period of each election day in which the official serves in his or her official capacity. An employe who serves as an election official shall provide his or her employer with at least 7 days' notice of application for a leave. The municipal clerk shall verify appointments upon request of any employer.
7.33(4)
(4) Each state agency shall, upon proper application under
sub. (3), permit each of its employes to serve as an election official without loss of fringe benefits or seniority privileges earned for scheduled working hours during the period specified in
sub. (3), and without loss of pay for scheduled working hours during the period specified in
sub. (3) except as provided in
sub. (5), and shall not impose any other penalty upon an employe who serves as an election official.
7.33(5)
(5) Any employe of the state who obtains a paid leave of absence in order to serve as an election official under
s. 7.30 shall certify in writing to the head of the state agency by which he or she is employed the amount of compensation that the employe receives for such service. Upon receipt of the certification, the head of the state agency shall deduct that amount from the employe's pay earned for scheduled working hours during the period specified in
sub. (2) when the employe is on a paid leave of absence.
7.33(6)
(6) Each employer other than a state agency shall, upon proper application under
sub. (3), permit each of its employes to serve as an election official without loss of fringe benefits or seniority privileges earned for scheduled working hours during the period specified in
sub. (3), and shall not impose any other penalty upon an employe who serves as an election official, except the employer need not pay wages to an employe for time not worked while the employe is serving as an election official.
7.36
7.36
Chief inspector's duties. Subject to the supervision of the municipal clerk or executive director of the board of election commissioners, the chief inspector shall direct the conduct of activities assigned to the inspectors at the polling place. The chief inspector shall refer any question as to the proper procedure to be employed in carrying out the inspectors' duties to the municipal clerk or executive director.
7.36 History
History: 1985 a. 304.
7.37
7.37
Inspectors' duties. 7.37(1)(1)
Adjourn to another location. Whenever it becomes impossible or inconvenient to hold an election at the designated location, the inspectors, after assembling at or as near the designated polling place as practicable and before receiving any votes, may adjourn to the nearest convenient place for holding the election. The inspectors shall make a proclamation of the move and a law enforcement officer or other proper person designated by the municipal clerk shall be stationed at or as near as possible to the place where the adjournment was made, to notify all electors of the place to which the election adjourned. At the new location the inspectors shall immediately proceed with the election.
7.37(2)
(2) Preserve order. The inspectors shall possess full authority to maintain order and to enforce obedience to their lawful commands during the election and the canvass of the votes. They shall permit only one person in a voting booth at a time and shall prevent any person from taking notice of how another person has voted, except when assistance is given under
s. 6.82. They shall enforce
s. 5.35 (5) and prevent electioneering from taking place in violation of
s. 12.03. If any person refuses to obey the lawful commands of an inspector, or is disorderly in the presence or hearing of the inspectors, interrupts or disturbs the proceedings, they may order any law enforcement officer to remove the person from the voting area or to take the person into custody.
7.37(3)
(3) Check ballot boxes. Immediately before the proclamation that the polls are open the election inspectors shall open each ballot box in the presence of the people assembled there, turn the boxes upside down so as to empty them of everything that may be inside and then lock them. The ballot boxes shall remain locked and shall not be reopened until the polls close for the purpose of counting the ballots therein.
7.37(4)
(4) Balloting procedure. At polling places which utilize paper ballots or electronic voting systems in which ballots are distributed to electors, 2 inspectors shall be assigned to take charge of the official ballots. They shall write their initials on the back of each ballot and deliver to each elector as he or she enters the voting booth one ballot properly endorsed by each of them. Where paper ballots are used, the inspectors shall fold each ballot in the proper manner to be deposited before delivering it to the elector. If asked, inspectors may instruct any elector as to the proper manner of marking or punching the ballot, but they may not give advice, suggestions, express any preferences or make any requests as to the person for whom, the question on which or the ballot on which the elector shall vote.
7.37(5)
(5) Improper conduct. Any election official who intentionally fails to properly indorse a ballot or who intentionally gives an elector a ballot not properly indorsed shall be removed as an election official.
7.37(6)
(6) Attach stickers. Whenever a vacancy occurs in a nomination after the ballots have been printed and stickers are provided under
s. 7.38 (3) or
8.35 (2), the inspectors shall, at the direction of the municipal clerk, properly apply the stickers to the official ballots before endorsement.
7.37(7)
(7) Registration and poll lists. Two inspectors shall be assigned to have charge of the registration or poll lists at each election.
7.37(8)
(8) Electronic voting systems. Prior to the opening of the polling place, wherever electronic voting systems employing voting devices are used, the inspectors shall place the voting devices in position for voting and examine them to see that they are in proper working order and that they have the correct ballot labels by comparing them with the sample ballots.
7.37(9)
(9) Posting sample ballots. Two sample ballots sent by the municipal clerk shall be posted by the inspectors near the entrance to the polling place for public inspection throughout the day.
7.37(10)
(10) Challenged electors. If any person is challenged for cause, the inspectors shall proceed under
ss. 6.92 and
6.925 and with the aid of other provisions of
ch. 6 as appear applicable, shall resolve the challenge.
7.37(11)
(11) Spoiled ballots. Any spoiled ballot returned to an inspector under
s. 6.80 (2) (c) shall be immediately destroyed by one of the inspectors.
7.37(12)
(12) Canvassers. The election inspectors shall constitute the board of canvassers of their polling place and in that capacity shall perform the duties under
s. 7.51, except as otherwise designated by the municipal clerk under
ss. 5.85 and
5.86.
7.38
7.38
Political party election functions. 7.38(1)
(1)
Observers. Each recognized political party may appoint observers at polling places as provided in
s. 7.39.
7.38(3)
(3) Vacancies after nomination. 7.38(3)(a)(a) Except as provided in
par. (d), after the death of a candidate nominated for a partisan office, either in a primary or when no primary is required under
s. 8.50 (3) (b), the vacancy may be filled by the candidate's political party. In the case of county offices, the vacancy shall be filled by the chairperson of the county committee. If no county committee exists, the vacancy shall be filled by the chairperson of the state committee. For other offices, the vacancy shall be filled by the chairperson of the state committee. The appropriate chairperson shall file with the official or agency with whom nomination papers are filed for the office a certificate signed, certified and sworn to the same as an original nomination paper. The certificate shall state the cause of the vacancy, the name of the new nominee and the office for which the nomination is made. A political party may not nominate a candidate for an office for which no person representing that party has filed nomination papers and a declaration of candidacy.
7.38(3)(b)
(b) The certificate shall be filed within 4 days of the date of notification of the vacancy and shall have the same effect as original nomination papers.
7.38(3)(c)
(c) If the vacancy occurs after ballots have been printed in any county or municipality, the chairperson of the committee filling the vacancy shall supply the municipal clerk with stickers containing the name of the new nominee only. The stickers may be no larger than the space provided on the ballot for the original candidate's name and office.
7.38(3)(d)
(d) There can be no vacancy in nomination prior to a party primary, except when no primary is required under
s. 8.50 (3) (b).
7.38(3)(e)
(e) In the event of failure to file the name of a current state chairperson, as required under
s. 8.17 (12), the board may not recognize the state committee for the purpose of filling vacancies under
par. (a).
7.39(1)(1)
Party observers. For every polling place, each recognized political party may appoint 2 party observers and an alternate for each, as observers of the election proceedings. The appointments may be made by the county committee of the party that nominated the candidates. Party appointments shall be filled by the chairperson of the party. Except at primary elections, observers appointed by a party shall serve as observers for all candidates appearing on the ballot or in the column of that party.
7.39(2)(a)(a) Candidates at partisan primary elections, independent candidates at partisan elections and candidates at nonpartisan elections may similarly appoint one observer for each polling place to represent them.
7.39(2)(b)
(b) Groups registered under
s. 11.05 (1) may similarly appoint one observer for each polling place to represent the group at any referendum election.
7.39(2)(c)
(c) The board may promulgate rules prescribing procedures and standards whereby nonpartisan and bipartisan organizations of electors not affiliated with any candidate may be authorized to appoint observers under this section.
7.39(2m)
(2m) Candidate disqualification. No candidate at an election may serve as an observer of the election proceedings at that election.
7.39(3)
(3) Filing of appointment. The person making each appointment shall file a signed letter of appointment with the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners of the municipality in which the appointee is designated to serve at least 4 days before the election. The file copy shall specify the name and residence of the appointee, the polling place for which appointed, and the name of an alternate appointee, if any, in case the original appointee is absent.
7.39(4)
(4) Permits. Upon filing, the clerk shall issue permits to the appointees giving authority to be present during the election and counting of the ballots. Upon request, the clerk shall issue a permit to the alternate appointee when an original appointee fails to serve for all or a part of the day.
7.39(5)
(5) Poll positions. Observers of election proceedings, as a matter of right, shall be so positioned at the polls by the chief inspector as to reasonably be enabled to closely observe proceedings and hear instructions given to voters.
7.40
7.40
Sample ballots. Any individual, committee or candidate, at their own expense, subject to limitations upon contributions and disbursements under
ch. 11, may print a supply of sample ballots, provided they bear on their face the information required by
s. 11.30 (2) and they contain all the names shown on the official ballot.
7.40 History
History: 1987 a. 391 s.
46m.
7.41
7.41
Public's right to access. 7.41(1)
(1) Any member of the public may be present at any polling place for the purpose of observation of an election, except a candidate at that election.
7.41(2)
(2) The chief inspector may restrict the location of any individual exercising the right under
sub. (1) to certain areas within a polling place. The chief inspector shall clearly designate such an area as an observation area. Designated observation areas shall be so positioned to permit any authorized individual to readily observe all public aspects of the voting process.
7.41(3)
(3) The chief inspector may order the removal of any individual exercising the right under
sub. (1) if that individual commits an overt act which:
7.41(3)(a)
(a) Disrupts the operation of the polling place; or
7.41 History
History: 1989 a. 192.
CANVASS OF RETURNS AND CERTIFICATION
7.50
7.50
Elector intent. 7.50(1)(1)
Requirements and restrictions. 7.50(1)(a)(a) Except as provided in
s. 7.15 (6), only ballots provided by the person authorized to have them printed shall be cast and counted in any election.
7.50(1)(b)
(b) When an elector casts more votes for any office or measure than he or she is entitled to cast at an election, all the elector's votes for that office or measure are invalid and the elector is deemed to have voted for none of them, except as provided in
par. (c) and
sub. (2) (d). If an elector casts less votes for any office or measure than he or she is entitled to cast at an election, all votes cast by the elector shall be counted but no vote shall be counted more than once.
7.50(1)(c)
(c) If an elector casts more than one vote for the same candidate for the same office, the first vote is valid and the remaining votes are invalid.
7.50(1)(d)
(d) Whenever an electronic voting system is used at a polling place in a partisan primary, and the same ballot is utilized to cast votes for candidates of more than one recognized political party or candidates of a party and independent candidates, if an elector designates a preference for a party or for independent candidates, only votes cast within that preference category may be counted. If an elector does not designate a preference and makes a mark or punch or affixes a sticker opposite candidates of more than one recognized political party or opposite a candidate in the independent candidates' column and a candidate of a recognized political party, no votes cast by the elector for any candidate for partisan office are valid. Votes for other candidates and votes on ballot questions, if any, shall be counted if otherwise valid.
7.50(2)
(2) Ascertainment of intent. All ballots cast at an election which bear the initials of 2 inspectors shall be counted for the person or referendum question for whom or for which they were intended, so far as the electors' intent can be ascertained from the ballots notwithstanding informality or failure to fully comply with other provisions of
chs. 5 to
12.To determine intent:
7.50(2)(a)
(a) At a general election, if the elector places a mark, symbol or sticker or punches a hole under a party designation at the head of a column in or near the space indicated for that purpose, it is a vote for all the candidates whose names appear in the marked or punched column except as otherwise provided in this paragraph. If a name is stricken, it is not a vote for that candidate. If a name is written in, it is a vote for the write-in candidate. If a sticker is attached it is a vote for the candidate whose name appears on the sticker. If in some other column there is a mark or punch in the square to the right of a specific candidate's name or at the place designated on the ballot for marking or punching a vote for a specific candidate for the same office, it is a vote for that specific candidate and no vote may be counted for the candidate for the same office in the column marked or punched for a straight party vote.
7.50(2)(b)
(b) A ballot cast without any marks, stickers or punches may not be counted. A ballot without a mark or punch at the top of a party column may be counted only for persons for whom marks or punches are applicable.
7.50(2)(c)
(c) If an elector marks a ballot with a cross (7), or any other marks, as |, A, V, O, /, ✓, +, within the square to the right of a candidate's name, or any place within the space in which the name appears, indicating an intent to vote for that candidate, it is a vote for the candidate whose name it is opposite.
7.50(2)(cm)
(cm) Any apparent erasure of a mark next to the name of a candidate may not be counted as a vote for that candidate if the elector makes another mark next to the name of one or more different candidates for the same office and counting of the mark would result in an excess number of votes cast for the office.
7.50(2)(d)
(d) If an elector writes a person's name in the proper space for write-in candidates for an office, it is a vote for the person written in for the office indicated, regardless of whether the elector strikes the names appearing in the same column for the same office, or places a mark or punch by the same or any other name for the same office, or omits placing a mark or punch to the right of the name written in. If an elector is permitted to vote for more than one candidate for the same office in an election and casts one or more write-in votes which, when added to the votes cast for candidates whose names appear on the ballot, exceed the number of votes authorized to be cast for the office, the write-in votes shall be counted and the votes for candidates whose names appear on the ballot may not be counted, unless there are more write-in votes than votes authorized to be cast, in which case no votes may be counted for the office.
7.50(2)(e)
(e) No write-in vote shall be regarded as defective due to misspelling a candidate's name, or by abbreviation, addition, omission or use of a wrong initial in the name. Every vote shall be counted for the candidate for whom it was intended, if the elector's intent can be ascertained from the ballot itself.
7.50(2)(f)
(f) If a sticker applied to the ballot lists a candidate's name and the office which the candidate seeks, it is a vote for the name appearing on the sticker even if the sticker does not contain a box or the elector omits the cross to the right of the name, or makes a cross in another column for a candidate for the same office. If a sticker is pasted over the name of any candidate printed on the ballot, it is a vote for the candidate shown on the sticker but no vote may be counted for the candidate over which the sticker is pasted. Only stickers appearing on the face of the ballot may be counted.
7.50(2)(g)
(g) In partisan primaries, if an elector writes in the name of an individual on a ballot other than the one on which that individual's name is shown as a candidate, the write-in vote may not be counted.
7.50(2)(h)
(h) In the general election or a partisan special election, a write-in vote may not be counted for any candidate if the candidate's name appears on the official ballot, except a write-in vote cast for the same office under which the candidate's name appears if no other similar name appears on the ballot for any office.
7.50(2)(hm)
(hm) In a nonpartisan primary or election using voting machines if an elector is permitted to vote for more than one candidate for the same office, a write-in vote may not be counted if the vote is cast for a candidate whose name appears on the ballot for that office.
7.50(2)(i)
(i) The failure by an elector to write in the name of a candidate for the office of vice president of the United States on the general election ballot does not invalidate the elector's vote for any candidate whose name is written in for the office of president of the United States. The failure of an elector to write in the name of a candidate for the office of president of the United States on the general election ballot invalidates the elector's vote for any candidate whose name is written in for the office of vice president of the United States. The failure of an elector to write in the names of candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor on the general election ballot invalidates the elector's vote for any candidate whose name is written in for the office of governor or lieutenant governor alone.
7.50(2)(j)
(j) If an elector writes in or pastes a sticker in the position for an office, it is a vote for that office, even if the elector writes in or the sticker indicates the name of a different office.
7.51
7.51
Local board of canvassers. 7.51(1)
(1)
Canvass procedure. Immediately after the polls close the inspectors shall proceed to canvass publicly all votes received at the polling place. In any municipality where an electronic voting system is used, the municipal governing body or board of election commissioners may provide or authorize the municipal clerk or executive director of the board of election commissioners to provide for the adjournment of the canvass to one or more central counting locations for specified polling places in the manner prescribed in
subch. III of ch. 5. No central counting location may be used to count votes at a polling place where an electronic voting system is not employed. The canvass, whether conducted at the polling place or at the central counting location, shall continue without adjournment until the canvass is completed and the return statements are made.
7.51(2)(a)(a) The inspectors shall first compare the poll or registration lists, correcting any mistakes until the poll or registration lists agree. The chief inspector and the inspectors who are responsible for recording electors under
s. 6.79 shall verify the correctness of the poll or registration lists after the polls close by each signing their name thereto. Where ballots are distributed to electors, the inspectors shall then open the ballot box and remove and count the number of ballots therein without examination except as is necessary to ascertain that each is a single ballot. If 2 or more ballots are folded together so as to appear as a single ballot, the inspectors shall lay them aside until the count is completed; and if, after a comparison of the count and the appearance of the ballots it appears to a majority of the inspectors that the ballots folded together were voted by the same person they may not be counted but the inspectors shall mark them as to the reason for removal, set them aside and carefully preserve them. The inspectors shall then proceed under
par. (b).
7.51(2)(b)
(b) When during the counting of the ballots cast at an election a majority of the inspectors find that a ballot is so defective that they cannot determine with reasonable certainty for whom it was cast, they shall so mark the ballot and preserve it. The inspectors shall not count the vote cast on the ballot for any office for which they determine the ballot to be defective.
7.51(2)(c)
(c) Whenever the number of ballots exceeds the number of voting electors as indicated on the poll or registration list, the inspectors shall place all ballots face up to check for blank ballots. In this paragraph, "blank ballot" means a ballot on which no votes are cast for any office or question. The inspectors shall mark, lay aside and preserve any blank ballots. If the number of ballots still exceeds the number of voting electors, the inspectors shall place all ballots face down and proceed to check for the initials. The inspectors shall mark, lay aside and preserve any ballot not bearing the initials of 2 inspectors or any absentee ballot not bearing the initials of the municipal clerk. During the count the inspectors shall count those ballots cast by challenged electors the same as the other ballots.
