Absentee voting to shatter old record in Wisconsin

80 percent of absentee ballots cast in person

Increasingly, absentee voting appears to be the way to go in Wisconsin.  

The state’s election commission said absentee voting for this presidential election “shattered” the previous record for number of ballots cast.

The previous highest total for those voting absentee in the state – which was the last presidential election – was a hair under 665,000. As of Monday, just under 800,000 absentee ballots had been recorded in clerks’ offices around Wisconsin.

Thousands of other absentee ballots have been issued but had not been returned as of Monday’s count.

More than 21,000 ballots have been returned in La Crosse County. This is the first year clerks have had to track ballots coming in prior to election day.  

Over 80 percent of absentee ballots were cast in person.  

Total returned absentee ballots statewide make up about a quarter of all the expected votes cast Tuesday in Wisconsin.