(GREEN BAY, WISC.) — For the second time in three months, City of Green Bay Election Clerk Celestine Jeffreys’ office has inappropriately printed and mailed extra absentee ballots to individual registered voters.
“The Clerk has a straightforward but vital role,” said Caleb Hays, Chief Policy Counsel for the Center for Election Confidence. “When a Green Bay voter requests an absentee ballot, the Clerk must ensure that the ballots are drafted correctly and printed on time—and issue only one absentee ballot per voter at a time.”
The non-profit Center for Election Confidence sent a letter to Green Bay Common Council members offering its expert assistance as the Council develops solutions. The Center for Election Confidence also requested information concerning the Council’s plans for an independent, publicly disclosed investigation of the clerk’s office’s training, processes, and procedures that failed, as well as the Council’s plans for corrective action and procedural improvements. A copy of the correspondence is attached.
“We want every eligible citizen to make their voice heard by casting a ballot in American elections,” concluded Hays. “But we also want those voters to have confidence that our electoral system has the appropriate safeguards to ensure only one ballot is issued to any voter at a time—and that only one vote is recorded per voter.”
The Green Bay election office previously mailed extra ballots to more than 150 voters ahead of state Supreme Court elections in April 2026. At least one voter returned more than one ballot, although the Clerk’s office maintains only one vote was recorded.
After the April ballot error was discovered, Clerk Jeffreys assured the public her office was adopting new procedures to prevent similar mistakes in future elections. But the issue recurred this week ahead of the August 11 primary election for the 2026 Midterms. The City of Green Bay has yet to confirm how many extra ballots have been transmitted to voters as part of the current incident.
“Voters deserve more than press release platitudes pleading for cooperation and directing that they should simply trust that an opaque and (at the very least) under-documented process will somehow ensure ‘only one ballot per eligible voter will be tabulated’, as the Clerk promises,” continued Hays. “Trust but verify. There must be serious oversight and accountability at the Clerk’s office before the November election.”
“Real reforms must be put in place to protect both the integrity of Green Bay elections and Green Bay voters’ confidence in their election processes and outcomes. The Center for Election Confidence urges the Common Council to act now and stands ready to assist.”
