Waukesha County preps for Election Day; making sure ballots are counted
WAUKESHA, Wis. - What happens to your ballot after you leave the polls on Election Day? And how do you know your vote was actually counted?
Waukesha County Clerk Meg Wartman believes this presidential election should be smoother than 2020. She said there were fewer poll workers and more absentee ballots during that pandemic-era election.
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But this year, clerks all over are faced with more questions about what happens on election night.
Wartman said it’s like having a baby.
"You have nine months to think about it," Wartman said. "It’s like having a baby without a gender reveal."
With around 97% expected voter turnout and absentee votes making up a little less than half that, Wartman expects her team’s labor to last until the early morning hours of Nov. 6.
When the night is over, election officials check to make sure the number of ballots counted on the machines matches the number voters recorded in their poll book.
What happens if it doesn’t?
"Well, then they have to go through the poll book to see if there is a mistake somewhere," Wartman explained.
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The results are verified and confirmed at polling locations, then transmitted to Wartman's office through a closed cellular network.
Wartman said the longest process of the whole night is opening absentee ballots and putting them through tabulators.
That process is observed by multiple poll workers.
"We haven’t seen massive fraud," she said.
Your paper ballot is kept by the county for two years after an election.
Wartman showed empty bins waiting to be filled next month. She said the county has 140 bins from previous elections stored at an undisclosed, secure location in the event a race is challenged.
"It is our big night," Wartman said. "We know a lot of eyes are on us and a lot of people are depending on us."
Wartman is also on the November ballot. She’s running for re-election unopposed.