Wisconsin election officials discovered nearly 200 absentee ballots went uncounted during November’s general election.
The missing ballots were found “during post-election reconciliation and cleanup” and did not affect the outcome of any election, but they could have.
The City of Madison Clerk’s Office said it informed the state election board on Dec. 20 of the 193 missing absentee ballots and that they would contact each of the voters to notify them of the mistake.
The ballots were found in sealed carrier containers when the clerk’s office was going through its post-election process. The office has signaled it will make changes to avoid such a mistake in the future.
“Moving forward, every polling location will receive a list of absentee envelope seal numbers that will be verified as counted on Election Day,” a statement from the office says. “The goal of the Clerk’s Office is that each eligible voter will be able to cast a ballot and have that ballot counted. Falling short of this goal for the November 2024 Election, we sincerely apologize to our voters and will strive to make sure this never happens again.”
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, a Democrat, expressed her disappointment in a statement released on Thursday: “This oversight is a significant departure from the high standard our residents expect and must be addressed and avoided in future elections.”
“We plan to conduct a thorough review of the City’s election policies and procedures to ensure this kind of oversight does not recur. My office is committed to taking whatever corrective action is necessary to maintain a high standard of election integrity in Madison, and to provide ongoing transparency into that process,” Rhodes-Conway added. “This statement and the timeline are a first step in doing so.”
“I also wish to offer an apology to affected voters,” her statement continued. “You have my word that immediate steps will be taken to ensure this kind of mistake will not happen again.”
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President-elect Donald Trump claimed widespread election fraud after the 2020 elections, though no widespread evidence was found.
Trump beat Vice President Kamala Harris in Wisconsin by nearly 30,000 votes in November.
