As Election Day draws near in Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) is reminding that Election Night results are unofficial and that most results will not be available until the next morning. The commission says the reported results are never the final results and need to be certified. In a bulletin, the WEC says it’s normal for election results to change slightly as election officials ensure accurate vote totals and complete the certification process between Election Night and when the election is certified, which can last as long as December 1st. WEC requires all ballots must arrive to the local clerk by 8 pm to count, and election officials cannot produce results from the polling station until the polls close.
Upon completion of ballot counting, Municipal clerks send unofficial results to their county clerks, who will post them to the county’s website. WEC says they can’t predict exactly when election officials will send in unofficial results, with some results not fully posted to respective county websites until the early morning
hours on November 9th, or later in some occasions. “Election Night results are unofficial and reported out by media in real time,” said WEC Administrator Meagan
Wolfe. “These results have not been verified by the quality control measures in the canvass process, so the public shouldn’t draw conclusions until the results have been certified by Dec. 1.”
WEC says there are several factors that could delay the reporting of unofficial election results. One of those factors is Wisconsin law prohibiting election workers from counting absentee ballots until 7 a.m. on Election Day. As nearly 600 thousand ballots have been counted, along with a potentially high Election Day turnout, WEC says to be patient for results. WEC also identified more populated areas, including Milwaukee, Green Bay, Racine, Kenosha, and Janesville, have a central count facility that counts absentee ballots. Historically, WEC explains, these facilities and jurisdictions have been some of the last to report their unofficial results. Further, ballots need to be counted until counting is complete. Wolfe added that “If you see media reports that show a significant increase in the unofficial number of votes cast (from central count facilities), this doesn’t mean anything irregular is going on. This is just the reality of how it works for large cities that process votes at central locations.” WEC also says that malfunctions of machines may force delays as well, saying that polling stations have protocols for when situations occur. Those facilities also check for fraudulent ballots, which has been brought to light following the Milwaukee Election Commissioner Deputy Director being terminated from her position less than a week from the midterm election.
The biggest point is: accuracy. “Election officials prioritize accuracy over speed when tallying the unofficial results,” Wolfe said. “Unofficial election results may not be complete until the early morning hours after Election Day or later. That doesn’t mean anything is wrong. It just means election workers are taking their time to ensure votes are counted accurately.” Wolfe explained that “If you see media reports that show a significant increase in the unofficial number of votes cast, this doesn’t
mean anything irregular is going on,” Wolfe said. “This is just the reality of how it works for large cities that process votes at central locations.”
Finally, WEC says election night declarations of victory are based on predictions and incomplete results and are not confirmed until they are certified on December 1st.
