In 2022, the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which then had a conservative majority, ruled that ballot drop boxes could only be placed in local election clerks’ offices and the voter had to return their own ballot in person.
In early July, the Supreme Court, which now has a liberal majority, reversed that ruling saying unsupervised ballot drop boxes outside clerks’ offices are legal.
Clerks are not required to have one.
Rhinelander City Clerk Austyn Zarda says the one outside city hall was well used before the ban.
“A lot of our voters came in and they were definitely upset that we weren't able to use it any more. They liked being able to use it, especially for folks who weren't able to make get into City Hall before it closed,” said Zarda. “Once the Supreme Court overruled their previous decision and allow the use of drop boxes, we brought it back just because we heard everyone really enjoyed using it. It was a really effective way for people to make sure that they cast their ballot on time.”
The Wisconsin Elections Commission has issued guidelines to clerks on best practices for the ballot drop box.
The guidance for voters is posted on the outside of the drop box.
It includes informing voters they need to be registered to vote, live in the City of Rhinelander, explains who is able to return a ballot, and reminds them to make sure the ballot is valid.
“Make sure that their ballot envelope is sealed, and then on the back making sure that they are signing the ballot, and they have a witness sign the ballot as their witness, and also include their address, their city, all the stuff that's indicated on the back of that ballot and printing their name, just making sure that that ballot is fully filled out correctly,” said Zarda. “If it isn't, we try our best to make sure we can reach back out to them so that they're able to rectify that.”
If people plan to use the drop box, Zarda recommends doing so as soon as possible to ensure your ballot is received and counted.
4:30 p.m. on election day is when the clerk’s office closes and the deadline to use the ballot box, though Zarda says he tries to make it back to check before the polls close at 8:00 p.m.
“We check it every day when we get here and every day before we leave,” said Zarda. “Then, throughout the day, we're checking it multiple times, especially as we get closer to the election.”
Absentee ballots can be mailed back. You can also bring it to your polling place on election day. In-person absentee voting is also available right now.
It’s recommended to call ahead to make sure your clerk is available before going in.
If you plan on voting absentee, Zarda encourages you not to wait.
“Just always encouraging folks to get their ballot returned as early as possible because we know there's always something that comes up on election day that might prevent them from getting there in a timely manner,” said Zarda.
According to WEC data, more than 400 people in Rhinelander have requested absentee ballots for the upcoming election.
The Wisconsin Partisan Primary is August 13th.
