MADISON, Wis. — Dozens of Wisconsin cities, towns and villages don’t have enough poll workers for November 3.
In a normal year, the Badger State needs about 30,000 poll workers for a smooth election. This year, that number is even higher. Even if in-person turnout is lower than normal, it takes more work to process absentee ballots.
However, 51 communities across Wisconsin are facing a shortage deemed critical or serious. That’s spread over 33 counties.
Critical means that they don’t have enough people to open all their normal polling places, under state law. Those communities are in the most trouble.
“Serious means that they are able to open all their polling places, but they don't have as many folks as they need to run their operations as planned or as efficiently as as planned,” said Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe.
Below this story is a list of all the communities that need poll workers. Most only need 1-5.
Green Bay, Menomonie, and Antigo are the cities that need the most people. While Green Bay reported to the Wisconsin Elections Commission that they need 30 more poll workers, a staffer from the mayor’s office told Spectrum News 1 they’re hoping to get 100 more.
A majority of the communities that need poll workers are small.
“In some communities with really small polling places, they may only have a pool of, let's say five or seven people that are working at the polls on election day,” said Wolfe. “So if they have a shortage of two … that's that's a pretty significant need for that community.”
The National Guard stepped in earlier this year to be poll workers. Wolfe said it’s too early to tell whether they’ll be needed this time, that they can only call on the Guard “in an emergency” and it’s too soon to tell whether the shortage is an emergency or not.
“We don't have an order yet that they're the Guard would be able to help in this circumstance, but we can continue to communicate with them,” Wolfe said.
Meanwhile on Thursday, Governor Tony Evers said he’s prepared to mobilize the Wisconsin National Guard. “The Guard would play a role as much as they are needed,” Evers said.
Instead of having to call in the Guard, Wolfe hopes Wisconsinites pitch in.
“We are seeing a lot of communities where people really are stepping up and volunteering to be poll workers,” Wolfe said. “That need is lessening every day, so that's wonderful news.”
If you’d like to be a poll worker, Wolfe said to reach out to the smaller communities in your county. You can only serve at polling places in your county, but it can be any city or town.
To find contact information to be a poll worker at any of the below locations, click here.
Counties suffering a critical or serious poll worker shortage:
- Adams County
- Barron
- Brown
- Burnett
- Columbia
- Crawford
- Dodge
- Douglas
- Dunn
- Grant
- Green
- Juneau
- Kenosha
- Lafayette
- Langlade
- Marathon
- Marinette
- Marquette
- Monroe
- Outagamie
- Pierce
- Racine
- Richland
- Rock
- Sauk
- Shawano
- Sheboygan
- St. Croix
- Taylor
- Vernon
- Waushara
- Wood