Absentee Voters!!  Please Read!!

The use of Absentee Ballot Drop Boxes has been an off and on again topic of discussion for the State for a while now.  Back in January, the Waukesha County Circuit Court ruled that the use of drop boxes for absentee ballots is illegal for the State of Wisconsin.  The Wisconsin Supreme Court then issued a stay of the order for the April election.  The use of drop boxes for the August Primary or the November General elections remains unknown at this time.  This news article details more information:  https://www.wpr.org/wisconsin-supreme-court-rules-absentee-ballot-drop-boxes-not-allowed-april-election?fbclid=IwAR0YNyC4auA2ImmaaDubSlMhrnXrjUyRLJCKC_C6N16XIMsPGZ4OHHu8Rsc.

To help Clerks navigate this topic, the League of Wisconsin Municipalities released guidance (https://files.constantcontact.com/719b6d0b001/534831ac-4c5d-466e-a906-69b2a89f2bd0.pdf?fbclid=IwAR3ckchNVs7dPqLZgldynt_qe_aq_VxO-HXeWWqwjnnRQDz7nTMaRt_miAE) and along with consulting the Village Municipal Attorney, LaRowe Gerlach LLP- Reedsburg, WI, the Village Clerk is asking the Village of North Freedom Absentee Voters to deliver your ballot any 3 ways per WI State Statutes…

·    An Elector may mail or personally deliver their ballot to the Village Clerk’s Office

·    A 3rd party is only authorized to drop off an absentee ballot when it is authorized by the law 

·    The use of drop boxes, as described in WEC’s 2020 guidance, is not permitted under Wisconsin law unless the drop box is staffed by the clerk and located at the clerk’s office or a properly designated alternative site under Wis. Stat. § 6.855.[i]

With this being said, Absentee Ballots can ONLY be placed in the drop box during the Office Hours of the Village Clerk – Monday through Friday 8:00 A.M. to 3:30 P.M. – Any ballots placed in the drop box after the Village Clerk’s office hours, will NOT be counted.  There is a sign above the Village drop box to reflect this message.

We appreciate your cooperation with this and we understand how confusing some of this can be.  Please call or email Clerk Breunig with any questions you may have.  608-522-4550 or villageofnorthfreedom@gmail.com.