Wisconsin voters are casting their ballots earlier and differently this election cycle, turning away from postal dropboxes and heading directly to municipal offices and polling sites.
With Election Day just days away, statewide tallies published by the Wisconsin Elections Commission reveal that 693,334 absentee ballots have already been processed statewide as of Friday morning. That figure outpaces the total from the same point in 2022 by roughly 50,000 votes.
Shifting from Mail-In to In-Person Voting Across Wisconsin Counties
The mechanics of how Wisconsinites vote have shifted dramatically over the past two years. According to state data analyzed by Wisconsin Public Radio, mail-in absentee ballots dropped by more than 20 percent, falling from about 384,000 in 2022 down to roughly 300,000.
At the same time, in-person absentee voting surged by over 50 percent. State records show voters cast about 394,000 in-person absentee ballots this year, compared to about 259,000 during the 2022 election.
This dramatic pivot follows months of public debate and logistical friction. Donald Trump mounted unsuccessful attempts to restrict who can vote by mail, heightening voter anxiety. Meanwhile, widespread concerns over Postal Service reliability pushed electors to seek more secure methods for delivering their ballots.
Earlier this year, the Wisconsin Elections Commission formally asked the U.S. Postal Service to expedite absentee ballot deliveries after a majority of municipal clerks reported chronic delivery delays. Those administrative warnings were highlighted by local experiences, such as in Fond du Lac County, where the local clerk reported receiving 100 absentee ballots too late to be counted following the April 7 election.
Changes in Democratic and Republican Strongholds
The move toward in-person voting is not isolated to a single political demographic or geographic region. It appears in the state’s most populous urban centers as well as its suburban counties.
In Milwaukee County and Dane County—both key Democratic strongholds—mail-in absentee ballots dropped significantly. Milwaukee County saw mail-in totals fall by more than 25 percent compared to 2022, while Dane County registered a drop of over 30 percent. Yet, both counties saw surges in foot traffic at early voting sites, with Milwaukee’s in-person absentee ballots climbing 45 percent and Dane’s increasing by nearly 50 percent.
The exact same pattern played out in suburban, Republican-leaning counties. Washington County experienced a more than 20 percent decline in mail-in ballots, alongside a 75 percent spike in in-person absentee voting. Waukesha County mirrored that trend, posting a similar decline in mail usage paired with a greater than 40 percent increase in in-person early voting.
