Absentee voting underway in advance of August 14th primary

MILWAUKEE -- Wisconsin voters take to the polls in about two weeks for the state of Wisconsin's first August primary election since World War II! Absentee voting began for this primary election Monday, July 30th.

On Day One of absentee voting for the August 14th primary, traffic for in-person absentee voting wasn't anything like it was during early voting for Wisconsin's recall election back in June. However, voters said they were happy for the opportunity to cast their ballot early.

"We're going to be out of town on Election Day and I didn't want to miss the opportunity to vote," Judy Knight said.

Knight said despite all the recent elections, she doesn't have "voter fatigue."

"I think it's just part of the whole continuum of this year's elections which are all very important, ending up with the presidential and the governor's recall and all that," Knight said.

August's primary election will be Neil Albrecht's first election serving as Executive Director of Milwaukee's Election Commission, replacing Sue Edmond. In the past, Albrecht served as deputy director.

"In the last year there have been a lot of changes to election laws, so I'm re-familiarizing myself with those and then also want to work with our poll workers and our staff so knowledge-wise we're all equipped for the upcoming elections," Albrecht said.

Albrecht said he is expecting an overall voter turnout of 20-25%.

"There are some pretty heated state Assembly races where there are no incumbents and a key state Senate race, so in those districts we expect pretty high turnout," Albrecht said.

On August 14th, voters will also have a chance to choose a candidate in Wisconsin's GOP U.S. Senate primary race to take on Democrat Tammy Baldwin in the general election.

Because this is a primary election, elections officials are reminding voters to only choose candidates from one political party.

Additionally, due to redistricting, some wards have changed.

"It helps you move in and out of your voting site quickly if you know your ward number at the time you turn out at your polling site," Albrecht said.

CLICK HERE to find out your ward number via the Milwaukee Election Commission's website.

CLICK HERE to visit the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board's website for further election information.

Absentee ballots can be requested through the mail through Thursday, August 9th.

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