Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 7 - Election officials; boards; selection and duties; canvassing.
7.20 - Board of election commissioners.

7.20 Board of election commissioners.
(1) A municipal board of election commissioners shall be established in every city over 500,000 population. A county board of election commissioners shall be established in every county over 750,000 population.
(2) Each board of election commissioners shall consist of 3 members, each member being chosen from lists of at least 3 names each, selected and approved by the county committee of the 2 political parties receiving the most votes for governor in the county in the case of the county board of election commissioners, and receiving the most votes for governor in the city in the case of the city board of election commissioners, in the last general election. The county executive, for the county board of election commissioners, shall select from the list 2 persons from the majority party and one person from the next highest party in the county. The mayor, for the city board of election commissioners, shall select from the list 2 persons from the majority party and one person from the next highest party in the city.
(3) The persons chosen shall be qualified electors and residents of the state and county and, for the city board of election commissioners, of the city.
(4) Before beginning their duties as election commissioners each appointee shall take and file the official oath.
(5) Each board of election commissioners shall choose its own chairperson. An act of a majority of the board is an act of the board.
(6) The election commissioners shall not hold any other public office and are ineligible for any appointive or elective public office, except the office of notary public, during their term.
(7) The term of office shall be 4 years, and until successors have been commissioned and qualified, beginning on July 1 each year following a presidential election. Successors shall be appointed the same way.
History: 1973 c. 334; 1975 c. 124; 1983 a. 484 s. 172 (1); 1993 a. 184; 2013 a. 373.
Municipal clerks are the officials primarily responsible for election administration in Wisconsin. A “board of election commissioners" is established in Wisconsin's high population cities and counties to carry out the duties otherwise accomplished by municipal and county clerks everywhere else. The phrase “municipal clerk or board of election commissioners" appears in tandem all over the election statutes because that describes the duties of local election officials. State ex rel. Zignego v. Wisconsin Elections Commission, 2021 WI 32, 396 Wis. 2d 391, 957 N.W.2d 208, 19-2397.

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