Wisconsin voters, no matter who they cast their ballot for or where they live in our state, can agree that our election process needs to be continually updated and strengthened. All Wisconsinites want to have confidence that they are participating in elections conducted without partisan bias or favoritism. Sufficient funding of election administration and maintaining adequate staff to carry out these important functions will keep our elections secure, free, and fair. The state agency that oversees elections, the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC), and the nearly 2,000 county and municipal clerks who conduct and administer Wisconsin elections need and deserve the financial support from the State of Wisconsin to be able to continue to do their vitally important jobs.
On February 18th, Gov. Tony Evers released his 2025-27 biennium budget proposal which reflects modest and sensible requests for much needed funding for election related items. These budget items include such areas as technology updates to our election systems with enhanced security measures, properly compensating election officials and staff including the hard-working citizens who step up as poll workers, replacing outdated election equipment, providing accessible accommodations for voters with special needs, and strengthening WEC’s ability to educate and provide full services to the voting public. In order for WEC to be able to function the way the Wisconsin Legislature intended, and in the manner voters of Wisconsin have every right to expect, additional financial resources are necessary to address these needs in order for public confidence in our elections to be elevated. Successful, accurate, and secure elections can occur only with sufficient funding to get the job done.
Common Cause Wisconsin is appreciative of the Governor's support for strengthening the conduct of elections in Wisconsin and encourages bipartisan legislature support for his proposals. We highlight these specific initiatives of the Governor’s budget in particular [1]:
Wisconsin Election Commission
2. Office of Election Transparency and Compliance: the addition of 10 WEC positions to meet the exponentially increased public demand for information and the vastly increased number of inquiries to WEC about election-related issues.
5. Funding for Information Technology: to update existing information systems and training to keep them current.
6. Support for Ongoing Programs and Other Commission Costs: to maintain existing capacity to provide voter services.
17. Convert Expiring Existing Project Positions to Permanent Positions: again, to maintain current capacity to serve voters.
18. Standard Budget Adjustments: to keep pace with rising costs.
Local Election Administration
3. Grant Programs for Local Election Offices: modest support to better enable local election clerks to serve their voters, including to purchase electronic poll books.
4. Funding for Special Elections: to shift the burden of election administration costs from counties and municipalities to the state which calls for a special election that is within these counties and municipalities.
Department of Transportation
7. Automatic Voter Registration (AVR): Modest funding to enable the WEC to work with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to initiate automatic voter registration of all eligible electors at DMV sites. About half the states in the nation have adopted AVR with bipartisan support including our neighbors Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois.
Additionally, in April 2024, the Wisconsin Legislature saw to it that outside private funding for election administration was banned. Now, the legislature has an opportunity to help fill the gap created by that measure and provide the necessary state funding of elections in Wisconsin. Now is the time for legislators of both parties to come together in support of the Governor's biennium budget proposal for the WEC and for election administration. This support will improve the conduct of elections in Wisconsin, and elevate public confidence in them and for our representative democracy.
Jay Heck
Executive Director, Common Cause Wisconsin
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[1] 2025-27 Elections Commission Executive Budget
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