Here’s what you need to know to vote in the April 6 spring election | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Edgar Mendez
March 31, 2021
Spring elections will take place on April 6. Early voting is taking place now until Friday, April 2 at the Zeidler Municipal Building, 841 N. Broadway Ave., Room 102. (Photo by Adam Carr)
The spring election is right around the corner, and we want you to have the information you need to vote.
The spring election will take place on Tuesday, April 6, but you can cast your vote early. Early voting is taking place now until Friday, April 2 at the Zeidler Municipal Building, 841 N. Broadway Ave., Room 102. Hours are from 8:30 am. to 4:30 p.m., but voting will be extended to 5 p.m. on Friday, April 2.
If you’re voting early in person, you will need a Wisconsin-issued driver’s license, or another acceptable form of photo ID. Here’s a list of acceptable identification.
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If you need to update your address since the last time you voted and your ID doesn’t have a current address, you’ll also need proof of residence, said Claire Woodall-Vogg, executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission. Here is a list of acceptable proofs of residence.
If you decide to vote absentee, you needed to have requested an absentee ballot by Tuesday, March 30, according to Woodall-Vogg. Although the state’s official deadline to request an absentee ballot is by 5 p.m. Thursday, April 1. Woodall-Vogg said that deadline is not realistic in Milwaukee “in order to have time to receive the ballot and then return it by drop box.”
Check your voter registration status here. Remember, you can still register to vote in person and fill out an absentee ballot at the early voting site or you can vote at your regular polling location on April 6. More on that later.
Here are the deadlines you need to know.
Absentee ballots can be dropped off at the voting site or at one of 15 drop-off sites located across the city. Here is a full list of drop-off sites, most of which are located at Milwaukee Public Library branches. Drop boxes remain open 24 hours a day until Election Day. That day, they will close at 5 p.m.
As always, you have the option to vote in-person on the day of the spring election. Unlike last year, when only five polling stations were open in the city due to the coronavirus pandemic, many more stations will be open this year. To find out where your polling site is, you can check on the City of Milwaukee portal by clicking here or by visiting the state’s website here.
You can register to vote on site that day by bringing an acceptable photo ID and proof of residence. If you’re already registered, make sure you have your ID and are at the correct polling site. Polling places will require masks and that voters maintain a safe social distance.
Voters will choose between Deborah Kerr and Jill Underly in the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Gov. Tony Evers served as superintendent from 2009 to 2019. Several Milwaukee Public Schools district board races will be decided. In addition, several seats for municipal and circuit court judges are on the ballot, although nearly all of those races are uncontested.
For more information on voting, you can call the City of Milwaukee Election Commission at 414-286-3491 or email voterinfo@milwaukee.gov.