Polls (File Photo)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Speeding up that counting process is one reason 400 National Guard members will be helping the Wisconsin Elections Commission and clerks across the state.
You may not recognize them without a uniform… but the National Guard will be working the polls in northeast Wisconsin.
A Wisconsin National Guard spokesperson, Major Joseph Trovato shares that most of the northeast Wisconsin counties have under 5 national guard members coming to assist at polling places,
- Brown County – 2 members
- Marinette County – 5 members
- Kewaunee County – 2 members
- Winnebago – 5 members
- Manitowoc – 4 members
Because of Outagamie County’s ballot misprints, Outagamie County has 22 National Guard members to help, with 20 more members on standby.
Trovato says the 22 members are all going to the City of Appleton.
City clerk Kami Lynch says the help comes in handy,
“At least one at each polling place. Some polling places that had more ballots affected by the misprints or just have larger amounts of absentees,” said Lynch.
“Depends on the need at the municipal polling locations. It may be with duplicating these ballots it may be with processing absentees,” said Outagamie County Clerk Lori O’Bright.
O’Bright says the request for more National Guard members is because of the ballot misprints.
She says 55,000 people in Outagamie County have voted absentee.
“We anticipated going into this election not really needing any reservice,” said O’Bright, “Unfortunately some people get nervous when they said they were initially going to work and or an illness occurs so the national guard has been very helpful with filling those gaps.”
Travato says that April’s Election is the first time in Wisconsin National Guard History that members have been called to help with elections. Just over 400 members are deployed throughout the state for Tuesday.
“They are going to be performing the exact same roles and duties that would be expected at any traditional poll workers at any polling site state-wide,” said Trovato.
“It would just be slower for voters and take longer to do the absentee processing,” said Lynch.
O’Bright says it takes about four minutes to duplicate each ballot.
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