Partisan primaries today, Aug. 11, will determine who will face off in November’s elections for governor, Congress, the state Assembly, and half of the state Senate.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can vote as long as you are in line by 8 p.m.
You can look up whether you are registered to vote, what's on your ballot and where your polling place is at myvotewi.gov.
WUWM's Voter Guide has information on the candidates.
The most high-profile race on the ballot is the contest for Wisconsin governor. Rep. Tom Tiffany is the presumptive Republican nominee, but the Democratic field of candidates has been through a lot of turmoil. The field started with seven candidates and is now down to four. All seven candidates remain on the ballot — even the ones who dropped out.
Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes dropped out the race July 30, two days after early in-person voting began for the Aug. 11 primary. In addition to Barnes, candidates Sara Rodriguez and Missy Hughes dropped out, and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley reentered the race after dropping out. State Rep. Francesca Hong is leading in the polls. The other candidates are former secretary of administration Joel Brennan and state senator Kelda Roys.
For people who cast their vote for one of the Democrats who dropped out and have returned their ballots, the Wisconsin Elections Commission does not allow do-overs.
Here are some reminders from the Wisconsin Elections Commission for primary voters:
- If you still have your absentee ballot, make a plan to return it by 8 p.m. today. Do not rely on mail delivery. Check with your municipal clerk about where you can return you ballot. It may be at a polling place, the clerk's office or a central counting facility.
- You can register to vote at the polls on Election Day. In order to register, a proof-of-residence document with a current address is required.
- You need an acceptable photo ID to vote and your ID for voting does not need to show your current address. Most voters already have the photo ID they need to vote, such as a Wisconsin driver license or ID. If you don't have an acceptable ID, you can cast a provisional ballot. You will then have three days to submit the proper ID to the election clerk.
- In a primary election, Wisconsin law allows voters to choose which political party’s primary they wish to vote in without having to register to vote with a party. However, a voter may only vote within one party’s primary. If you select a party preference but vote in multiple primaries, only your chosen party’s votes will count. This is called crossover voting. Votes cast for any other party will not be counted.
