Absentee voting brisk ahead of recall election

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Gov. Scott Walker and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett observed Memorial Day by taking a break from campaigning. Plenty of voters, however, still had the recall election on their minds Monday, May 28th.

Hundreds of people spent their holiday in line at the Municipal Building in downtown Milwaukee, waiting cast absentee ballots ahead of the June 5 election. Some voters said they wanted to avoid crowds and possible shenanigans on Election Day. Others weren't
going to be in town that day. And some said they wanted to get their voting out of the way so they could spend Election Day encouraging others to head to the polls.

Cathy Cunningham, 50, said she wanted to vote early so she could do whatever she could on June 5 to help Barrett win. "I want to get rid of Walker,'' said Cunningham, who works at a grocery store. "I think he's fooling some people into thinking he's saving the state money but he's really selling out to corporate interests.''

The effort to recall Walker and five other Republicans stems largely from Walker's successful push to eliminate nearly all collective bargaining rights from most public-sector workers. In 2010, Walker defeated Barrett by 5 percentage points, and recent polls show the governor holds a slight lead over his Democratic challenger.

According to polls, the percentage of undecided voters is in the low single digits. That's why both candidates are concentrating less on wooing undecided voters and more on get-out-the-vote efforts. Even if voter turnout next week is a lofty 50 percent, that still means 2 million voters sat out the recall.

In-person absentee voting ends at 5:00 p.m. the Friday before the election (June 1st). Those mailing in absentee ballots must have them postmarked by election day (June 5th).

As a reminder -- it is illegal to take a picture of your completed ballot.

CLICK HERE for more information on absentee voting in the city of Milwaukee.

CLICK HERE for more information on voting and the recall election via the GAB’s website.

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