The City of Madison Clerk's Office has reported the discovery of 193 unprocessed absentee ballots from the November 5, 2024, general election. These ballots, which were found during post-election clean-up and reconciliation efforts, have been determined not to influence the outcome of any ballot races or referendums. The Clerk's Office affirmed the inconsequential nature of these ballots for election results in a statement, as reported by Spectrum News1.
Specific details on the findings indicate that 125 ballots were neglected to be processed in Ward 56, while Ward 65 accounted for another 67, and one additional ballot was mis-sorted in the tabulator for Ward 65, which belonged to Ward 68. This breakdown was also confirmed by the City of Madison Clerk's Office, according to a report by TMJ4. The initial set of ballots at Ward 65 was found in a sealed courier bag upon emptying a tabulator bin, while the remaining were discovered in two sealed absentee carrier envelopes during the reconciliation process in Ward 56.
After the discovery, the Clerk's Office promptly informed the Wisconsin Elections Commission in a memo before the required date of December 20 and has pledged full transparency regarding the matter. In addition to reaching out to the public, the affected voters will receive direct notifications and apologies from the Clerk's Office. These forthcoming measures were detailed in a memo attached to the notification sent to the Wisconsin Elections Commission and disclosed to the public on the official City of Madison website.
With intentions to prevent a recurrence of this oversight, the Clerk’s Office has introduced a new protocol. Moving forward, all polling locations will be equipped with a list of absentee envelope seal numbers for essential verification on Election Day. This measure aims to ensure that every ballot rightfully cast is counted. "We sincerely apologize to our voters and will strive to make sure this never happens again," officials stated, reflecting a commitment to uphold the integrity of the voting process, obtained by TMJ4.
