Wisconsin Voters Deserve Better Than “Trust Us Next Time”

Milwaukee: "Trust Us"

Milwaukee’s election officials have again asked the public to accept the same answer they have offered for years: mistakes happen, we are fixing them, and everything will be fine next time. That answer is no longer good enough.

The Milwaukee Election Commission’s own documents contain some striking admissions.

First, Milwaukee officials themselves describe what happened on election night as a “technical violation” of a clear state law. That law requires cities to report their election results to the county no later than two hours after the votes have been counted (tabulated). Milwaukee’s own records show the counting finished around 8:41 p.m., which means the results were supposed to be delivered by 10:41 p.m. Instead, the full results didn’t reach the county until roughly 1:00 a.m.—more than four hours late. Milwaukee has tried to downplay the delay as only about an hour, but its own sworn statements and the machines’ internal logs tell a different story. The MacIver Institute has previously reported on this same failure, documenting how staff downloaded audit logs instead of results from five of nine tabulators and the resulting delay in reporting absentee totals.

Second, state law also requires at least 48 hours’ public notice before the meeting of the board that counts absentee ballots (a process that happens at a place called “Central Count”). When asked to produce that required notice, Milwaukee’s top election official said she conducted a “diligent search” and still could not find any evidence that the notice was ever posted. Another official claimed, only “on information and belief,” that it had been posted, but offered no actual document, screenshot, or record to back that up. In plain terms, the city cannot prove it told the public the meeting was happening.

Finally, over the past several election cycles, the physical barriers that block observers from seeing parts of the ballot-handling process at Central Count have steadily increased. What used to be windows that allowed people to watch have been covered or permanently walled off. This makes it harder for the public to observe how absentee ballots are handled on election night.

As previously reported, observation has become increasingly restricted after WEC rejected staff recommendations for greater transparency, and areas where ballot envelopes are handled have been progressively walled off.

Taken together, these issues raise basic questions about whether Milwaukee is following the transparency rules that Wisconsin law requires, and whether the state Elections Commission should step in to investigate and require clearer, enforceable fixes before the next election.

These are not isolated glitches. They form a pattern. Each time the explanation is human error. Each time the remedy is a voluntary promise. And each time the next election arrives with another failure. Voluntary measures can be abandoned the moment public attention moves on. Wisconsin law gives the Elections Commission the authority, and the responsibility, to do more.

Under Wis. Stat. § 5.06, the Commission can find probable cause, investigate, and order election officials to conform their conduct to the law. That is exactly what should happen here. An enforceable order requiring documented bipartisan verification of results exports, retained proof of required notices, and a clear observation plan for the upcoming general election would replace promises with accountability.

Wisconsin voters do not demand perfection. They demand transparency and the confidence that comes from knowing the rules are followed and the process can be observed. When results arrive late, notices cannot be found, and observation is steadily restricted, voter confidence in our elections erodes. The Commission has the tools to restore it. It should use them.

2026 10 15 gavery v harris complaint.pdf