After Summer Mixup, Election Commission Approves New Poll Worker Instructions

The City of Milwaukee Board of Election Commissioners. L to R: Patricia Ruiz-Cantu (D), Doug Haag (R), Terrell Martin (D, chair), Paulina Gutierrez (executive director). Photo by Lauren Hafeman on Oct. 21, 2026.

After an employee error delayed the City of Milwaukee from reporting its election results for more than an hour in the August primary, the Milwaukee Election Commission is changing up its procedures.

On Wednesday, the election commission board approved an updated document that instructs poll workers how to download election results during the Nov. 3 gubernatorial election.

Commissioner Doug Haag moved to approve the updated downloading procedure document, which passed unanimously. The city has provided similar instructions in past elections, but the updated version includes photographs to illustrate the steps alongside written directions.

“What I like is that it’s very clear,” Commissioner Patricia Ruiz-Cantu said. “Anybody could look at it and understand, ‘Okay, now I click here, click here.'”

The update comes after the City of Milwaukee’s election results were delayed in the August primary that decided the Democratic Party’s gubernatorial candidate. An election worker, as bipartisan observers looked on, mistakenly downloaded audit logs, rather than the results from approximately 15,000 absentee ballots, from five of the nine high-speed tabulators used to count votes.

The updated document will be laminated and available for the exporting teams throughout the day. Poll observers and media will also have access to the document, though sensitive information, such as passwords required for downloading, will be redacted.

For the first time, the City of Milwaukee’s Central Count will be held at the Italian Community Center, 631 E. Chicago St. Central Count is where all absentee ballots are securely processed and counted during elections.

Across the City of Milwaukee, 27,590 absentee ballots have been issued and 10,137 have been returned as of Thursday, according to the Election Commission’s website.

“We’re at a low rate of return at this point, but we’ll find out more at the end of the week,” said Commission Executive Director Paulina Gutiérrez.

Across Milwaukee County, 75,848 absentee ballots have been issued and 46,980 have been returned as of Thursday, according to the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Of the absentee ballots returned, 15,594 were returned in person, which is a 63% increase compared to the 2022 election, WPR reported Wednesday.

There are 12 days left until the Nov. 3 election. Learn about how to vote in the City of Milwaukee on the Election Commission’s website.

To learn more about Wisconsin’s gubernatorial candidates David Crowley and Tom Tiffany, read Urban Milwaukee’s gubernatorial debate coverage.