Officials are encouraging people who aren’t registered to vote to do so now to avoid potential delays at the polls.
Madison City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl said that voter registration events will be held in Madison Tuesday at 34 locations.
“By registering to vote early, you are going to save yourself time at the polling place and also free up some poll workers who will be needed to check IDs,” said Witzel-Behl.
Stay informed on the latest news
Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter.
In order to cast a ballot, voters will need to show a Wisconsin photo ID. The state Department of Transportation is providing free state ID cards for voting, but the majority of Department of Motor Vehicle service centers that issue IDs are only open only two days per week.
Mayor Paul Soglin said that implementing photo id creates “significant” challenges, but city election officials are preparing so people can exercise their right to vote.
“I’m hoping that everyone in community sees this as an act of defiance that they are determined to carry out — that they will vote,” said Soglin. “We are not concerned about who they are voting for.”
Before the recent court ruling which allowed the reinstatement of voter ID, Madison had sent out 1,000 absentee ballots. So far, only about 100 have been returned with the necessary photo identification.
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2025, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
