Here's how to vote in Wisconsin's upcoming elections

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All across the country, people are gearing up to vote this year. In addition to the presidential race, we’ve got local elections, state legislative races and a contest for a U.S. Senate seat in Wisconsin. 

Wondering how you can make your voice heard? Here’s a guide to how to cast your ballot in the Badger State.  

When is election day?

Mark your calendars! There are three more election days in Wisconsin this year. 

The April 2 spring election includes both nonpartisan races as well as Wisconsin’s presidential preference primary.  The Aug. 13 partisan primary will include races for the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, as well as primaries in races for U.S. House, state Senate and state Assembly. The Nov. 5 general election is when Wisconsinites will cast ballots in all state and federal partisan races and join voters around the country in choosing the next president of the United States.  Registering to vote in Wisconsin 

The first step toward casting your ballot in Wisconsin is registering to vote. There are several ways to do it.

You can register online, by mail or in person at your municipal clerk’s office. You can also register to vote in person at your polling place on election day. You must provide a proof of residence document when registering to vote. 

Voters must reside at their current address for at least 28 days by election day in order to register to vote. To check if you’re already registered to vote, you can visit this website. 

The deadline to register online or by mail is 20 days before the election. You can register in person at your municipal clerk’s office up until the Friday before the election at 5 p.m. or close of business, whichever is later. You can’t register the Saturday, Sunday or Monday before an election, but you can still register at your polling place on election day.  

On election day 

Once you’ve registered, it’s time to head to the polls and cast your ballot. Polls in Wisconsin are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can find out where your polling place is here. 

You’ll need to bring a photo ID to vote in Wisconsin. You can learn more about what type of ID you need, how to get a free state ID and more here. 

Absentee voting in Wisconsin 

If you can’t be at the polls in person on election day, there are a few options for absentee voting in Wisconsin.

First, you need to request your ballot. You can request an absentee ballot online or by mail. The deadline to request an absentee ballot for most voters is the Thursday before the election. It must be received by mail or in person at your clerk’s office by 8 p.m. on election day.

If you want to vote in person before election day, you can go to clerks’ offices and other locations to cast your absentee ballot on certain days and times. You can see your options for in-person absentee voting where you live here. 

Happy voting! Even more information about voting in Wisconsin is available here.

The nonprofit Wisconsin Watch (www.WisconsinWatch.org) collaborates with WPR, PBS Wisconsin, other news media and the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.

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