Current:Home > StocksWisconsin election officials tell clerks best ways to operate absentee ballot drop boxes -MoneyTrend
Wisconsin election officials tell clerks best ways to operate absentee ballot drop boxes
View
Date:2025-04-19 09:10:46
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission on Thursday unanimously approved a set of best practices to ensure the security of unstaffed absentee ballot drop boxes that the state Supreme Court last week ruled could be installed for the fall elections.
The use of drop boxes became a partisan issue after Donald Trump lost to President Joe Biden in Wisconsin by just under 21,000 votes in 2020. Wisconsin is once again expected to be one of the few swing states this year, heightening attention to voting rules.
Since his defeat, Trump and Republicans have alleged that drop boxes in Wisconsin facilitated cheating, even though they offered no credible evidence. Democrats, election officials and some Republicans argued the boxes are secure. An Associated Press survey of state election officials across the U.S. revealed no cases of fraud, vandalism or theft that could have affected the results in 2020.
The best practices approved Thursday, to be distributed to the state’s 1,800 local officials who administer elections, detail ways to make drop boxes and surrounding areas safe, well-lit and accessible to voters. The guidance also encourages clerks to empty drop boxes before they get full.
The guidance does not specify that the boxes be emptied on any type of regular interval. It also says recording when the drop box is emptied, who did it and how many ballots are retrieved is encouraged.
What to know about the 2024 Election
- Democracy: American democracy has overcome big stress tests since 2020. More challenges lie ahead in 2024.
- AP’s Role: The Associated Press is the most trusted source of information on election night, with a history of accuracy dating to 1848. Learn more.
- We want to hear from you: If you didn’t vote in the 2020 election, would anything change your mind about voting?
- Read the latest: Follow AP’s live coverage of this year’s election.
The guidance also recommends that the drop boxes be clearly marked and that any damage be documented and inspected to ensure the box can be safely used. Clerks were also encouraged to communicate to voters the locations of drop boxes and when the last ballot retrieval date will be.
The guidance for clerks is just that. The best practices are not mandatory.
The commission opted not to adopt an emergency rule, which carries the weight of law, and instead issued the guidance to clerks which is in response to questions that came in the wake of the court’s ruling last week.
The commission wanted to move quickly to explain the impact of the court’s ruling that allows for the use of unstaffed drop boxes in all future elections, including the Aug. 13 primary and Nov. 5 presidential election.
Drop boxes had been used for years in Wisconsin, but their popularity exploded in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 40% of Wisconsin voters casting mail ballots, a record high.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court in 2022, then controlled by conservatives, ruled in favor of a conservative law firm that challenged the use of unstaffed drop boxes outside of clerk offices, such as near libraries and other public spaces. The court ruled that drop boxes can only be located at offices staffed by election clerks, not at remote, unstaffed locations.
Liberals brought a new challenge after the Wisconsin Supreme Court flipped to liberal control last year. The court last week overturned the 2022 ruling and once again allowed the use of absentee ballot drop boxes.
Drop boxes were used in 39 other states during the 2022 election, according to the Stanford-MIT Healthy Elections Project.
veryGood! (253)
Related
- Macy's says employee who allegedly hid $150 million in expenses had no major 'impact'
- US sanctions Zimbabwe president Emmerson Mnangagwa over human rights abuses
- The 'Wiseman' Paul Heyman named first inductee of 2024 WWE Hall of Fame class
- Singapore's Eras Tour deal causes bad blood with neighboring countries
- In ‘Nickel Boys,’ striving for a new way to see
- How does Selection Sunday work? What to know about how March Madness fields are selected
- Search continues for autistic Tennessee teen who walked away from home a week ago
- Handcuffed Colorado man stunned by Taser settles lawsuit for $1.5 million, lawyers say
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- You Won't Believe What Sparked This Below Deck Guest's Drunken Meltdown
Ranking
- Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
- North Carolina woman charged with murder in death of twin sons after father finds bodies
- The Best Leakproof Period Underwear That Actually Work, Plus Styles I Swear By
- What is Super Tuesday and how does tomorrow's voting work?
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- Caitlin Clark, Iowa set sights on postseason. How to watch Hawkeyes in Big Ten tournament.
- 2024 NFL combine winners, losers: Which players helped or hurt draft stock?
- Inside Zoey Deutch's Bleach Blonde Pixie Cut, According to Her Hair Colorist Tracey Cunningham
Recommendation
The Best Stocking Stuffers Under $25
2024 NFL combine winners, losers: Which players helped or hurt draft stock?
Rescue of truck driver dangling from bridge was a team effort, firefighter says
EA Sports announces over 10,000 athletes have accepted NIL deal for its college football video game
Former Danish minister for Greenland discusses Trump's push to acquire island
Jack Teixeira pleads guilty to leaking hundreds of highly classified Pentagon documents
“Who TF Did I Marry?” TikToker Reesa Teesa Details the Most Painful Part of Her Marriage
Curfews, checkpoints, mounted patrols: Miami, Florida cities brace for spring break 2024