Voter registration helps to ensure that qualified electors are allowed to vote
and to prevent ineligible persons from voting. In Wisconsin, it is required
by statute in 172 municipalities with populations of more than 5,000, and
locally in 167 smaller municipalities. Currently, 28.9 percent of the voting-age
population is not required to register before voting. However, beginning
in January 2006, the federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 and
2003 Wisconsin Act 265 will require voter registration statewide.
Individuals whose names appear on the voter registration list are presumed
to meet all eligibility requirements and, in general, are neither
required to provide identification or proof of residence nor to otherwise
demonstrate eligibility at the polls. Following the November 2004 elections,
concerns were raised about voter registration in the City of Milwaukee
and elsewhere, including the use of address verification cards to confirm
residency; the use of special registration deputies, who are appointed by
municipal clerks to assist in registering voters; and the adequacy of processes
in place for verifying voter eligibility. To address these concerns, and
at the direction of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, we evaluated:
voter registration requirements and the methods by which voters
register, including requirements in other states;
the address verification process, including the use of address
verification cards to confirm the residency of those who register by
mail or at the polls;
procedures and practices for updating voter registration lists; and
the role of the Elections Board.
Registration Methods
To encourage voter participation,
Wisconsin allows qualified electors
to register in person, by mail, or
with a special registration deputy
before Election Day, and at the polls
on Election Day. In municipalities
where registration is required by
statute, 20.3 percent of Wisconsin
voters registered at the polls on
Election Day in November 2004.
Municipal clerks rely on registrants
to affirm their eligibility, including
citizenship and age. However,
requirements for providing identification or proof of residence vary
depending on when an individual
registers and by which method.
Municipal clerks may appoint
special registration deputies to
assist with voter registration, but
they are not required to track which
individuals register through special
registration deputies. Some special
registration deputies are municipal
officials, but many work for interest
groups or political parties. Problems
have been identified with registrations
completed by some special
registration deputies, including
inaccurate, illegible, and falsified
registration forms.
Of the 150 municipalities responding
to our survey, 95 indicated they had
appointed special registration
deputies before the November 2004
elections. Those appointing the
most were Milwaukee (2,597),
Green Bay (1,500), and Madison (824).
Address Verification Cards
Address verification cards are the
primary tool available to municipal
clerks for verifying the residency
of registered voters and detecting
improper registrations by mail or
at the polls. Statutes require that
clerks send cards to everyone
who registers by mail or on Election
Day. However, only 42.7 percent of
the 150 municipalities we surveyed
sent cards to both groups, and
46.0 percent did not send any
address verification cards.
Statutes also require clerks to provide
the local district attorney
with the names of any Election Day
registrants whose cards are undeliverable
at the address provided.
However, only 24.3 percent of
the clerks who sent cards also forwarded
names from undeliverable
cards to district attorneys. District
attorneys we surveyed indicated
that they require more information
than is typically provided to conduct
effective investigations.
Sufficient information was available
to analyze undeliverable address
verification cards in four municipalities:
the cities of Madison,Waukesha, and Eau Claire and the
Village of Ashwaubenon. These
municipalities sent 45,864 address
verification cards to Election Day
registrants; 1,887 were returned.
Most were undeliverable because
voters had moved after the
November 2004 elections.
Voter Registration Lists
To ensure that voter registration
lists contain only the names of
qualified electors, municipal
clerks are required by statute to
remove or inactivate the names of
individuals who have not voted in
four years, to update registration
information for individuals who
move or change their names, and to
remove or inactivate the names of
deceased individuals. They are also
required to notify registered voters
before removing their names from
registration lists.
We found that statutory requirements
are not consistently followed.
Among our survey respondents:
only 85.3 percent of municipalities removed the names of
inactive voters from their
voter registration lists;
only 71.4 percent sometimes
or always notified registered
voters before removing their
names; and
only 54.0 percent reported
removing the names of
ineligible felons.
Because of such inconsistencies,
registration lists contain duplicate
records and the names of ineligible
individuals. For example, when
we reviewed more than 348,000
electronic voter registration records
from eight municipalities, we identified
3,116 records that appear to
show individuals who are registered
more than once in the same
municipality.
In six municipalities where sufficient information was available, we
identified 105 instances of potentially
improper or fraudulent voting
in the November 2004 elections.
These included:
98 ineligible felons who may have voted;
2 individuals who may have voted twice;
1 voter who may have been underage; and
4 absentee ballots that should
not have been counted because
the voters who cast them
died before Election Day.
We have forwarded names to the
appropriate district attorneys for
investigation.
For Future Consideration
Wisconsin’s voter registration
process will change significantly
beginning January 1, 2006, when
all new registrants will be required
by federal law and Wisconsin Statutes
to provide their Wisconsin
driver license number, a Wisconsin
Department of Transportation
identification card number, or the
last four digits of their Social Security
number, and a computerized voter
registration system will be implemented
statewide.
Elections Board officials believe the
new computer system will improve
the accuracy of voter registration
lists by standardizing registration
procedures, preventing duplicate
registrations across municipalities,
and enhancing the ability of local
election officials to detect improper
registrations and ineligible voters.
However, the system alone will
not be sufficient if municipal clerks
and other local officials do not
detect and prevent common data
entry errors, appropriately revise
and update voter registration
information, and follow uniform
procedures for identifying improper
registrations and ineligible voters.
We include a number of recommendations
to address these concerns.
In addition, the Legislature may
wish to consider:
adjusting the early registration
deadline to provide clerks more
time to prepare registration lists;
establishing more stringent
requirements for special
registration deputies, including
prohibiting compensation based
on the number of individuals
registered;
establishing uniform requirements
for demonstrating proof
of residence for all registrants;
providing municipal clerks with
more flexibility in the use of
address verification cards;
authorizing civil penalties
for local election officials and
municipalities that fail to comply
with elections laws; and
implementing mandatory
elections training requirements
for municipal clerks.
Recommendations
Our recommendations address the
need for the Elections Board to use
its existing authority to:
promulgate rules for the
appointment and training of
special registration deputies
(p. 28);
promulgate rules for the use of
address verification cards
(p. 38);
revise the voter registration
form to require disclosure of
felony conviction status
(p. 48);
promulgate rules to minimize
data entry errors, and automate
processes for identifying
ineligible voters
(p. 53);
promulgate rules to clarify
the responsibilities of election
officials and, if authorized by
statute, specify civil penalties
for noncompliance (p.
53); and
provide voter registration
training designed specifically
for municipal clerks (p.
57).
In addition, we include a recommendation
for the City of Milwaukee
Election Commission to:
report to the Joint Legislative
Audit Committee on its implementation
of recommendations
from the mayor’s task force for
improving the election process
in Milwaukee (p. 58).