No. During Wisconsin elections, such as the upcoming general election on Nov. 5, regular voters may only cast ballots in person at a polling location or by mailing an absentee ballot.
The website myvote.wi.gov enables Wisconsin residents to register online and request a paper absentee ballot. For voters who are already registered, Oct. 31 is the deadline to request an absentee ballot. All absentee ballots must be received by municipal clerks by 8 p.m. on Election Day.
However, there are exceptions for military and overseas voters.
The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, enacted in 1986, enables members of the U.S. Uniformed Services, the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Merchant Marine; their family members and U.S. citizens residing outside the country to electronically request and receive voter registration and absentee ballot applications and blank absentee ballots.
Thirty-one states — but not Wisconsin — along with Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands allow some voters, including those in the military or overseas, to return ballots electronically, via fax, email or through an online portal. Wisconsin only allows those types of voters to request and receive absentee ballots electronically, but they must return hard copies via the post.
Overseas voters must request their absentee ballots by 5 p.m. Oct. 31.
Military voters away from home must request their absentee ballots before 5 p.m. on Election Day and return them to their municipal clerk by 8 p.m., which while theoretically possible, is unlikely to be successful when voting in Wisconsin.
The federal Voting Assistance Program recommends returning completed ballots 11 to 35 calendar days before the election to be counted, depending on the location of the uniformed service member or their eligible family.
Citing cybersecurity concerns, a federal interagency group issued guidance in 2020 to increase state election officials’ awareness of the risks associated with electronic ballot delivery and return. The four agencies recommended paper ballots, saying remote voting is “vulnerable to systemic disruption.”
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