Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe attributed a decline in absentee voting so far to voter concerns about mail ballots and increased awareness of voting options.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Wolfe noted voter behavior had become less predictable but cited voter awareness of changes to the rules surrounding mail-in ballots, postal delays, and other issues. 

“People are just being a little more diligent about planning for these things and ensuring that their ballot makes it back by 8 p.m. on Election Day in order to be counted,” Wolfe said. “And I think in-person absentee offers a little more of that reassurance to folks.” 

Area election officials expressed similar views, with Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell attributing the shift away from mail-in voting to a lack of voter confidence in the U.S. Postal Service and a general shift toward pre-COVID-19 pandemic trends, when people were more likely to vote early and in-person. 

Acting Madison Clerk Kaitlyn Bernarde said the city was extending its hours at in-person absentee voting sites in anticipation of increased early voting numbers.

Early voting begins Oct. 20.

A WisPolitics check of absentee voting numbers earlier this month found mail-in absentee voting was down nearly 18% in Wisconsin compared to the same time four years ago, with requested ballots down 29.3% in Madison and 23.5% in Milwaukee. 

Asked about the prospect of federal government interference in November’s elections, Wolfe said she “didn’t expect anything unusual at our polling places this year” but that she expected election clerks would be prepared. 

“I do know that our clerks are planning for contingencies, for building relationships with their local law enforcement, for building relationships with their legal network, to make sure that if there were anything unusual, or if there were voters that were reporting feeling uncomfortable at the polling place, that they’d be able to navigate those situations,” Wolfe said. 

The U.S. Department of Justice plans to dispatch more than 1,000 election monitors across the country on Election Day. Department of Homeland Security officials have said they don’t plan to send immigration enforcement officers to patrol polling places, despite activists’ concerns.

Wolfe noted federal law bars the government from deploying armed agents to polling places.