Dane County officials rejected the new, government-recommended ballot for November’s election in favor of its traditional counterpart, Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell said Friday.
The Government Accountability Board, a state agency responsible for administering statewide elections, recommended the new ballot be used for the elections in November. McDonell said the changes don’t affect the election process in Wisconsin but could distract voters.
Previous state ballots have been straightforward, featuring a strict black and white organization and an arrow for the voter to complete. The GAB’s new ballot has shaded subheadings and candidates that are selected through bubbles, akin to a standardized test.
New ballots, despite being in the political sphere, rarely have any manipulative undertones and are merely the result of voter research, with changes always being minor in nature, according to McDonell. In the past, such changes have been as simple as the transition from the entire capitalization of candidates names to just the first letter.
Clerks in La Crosse and Waukesha Counties have also strayed from the GAB’s ballot. McDonell said that Dane County ballot formatting is entirely his jurisdiction.
“I am using a version that is approved by the GAB, and the board has taken no action to make any changes,” McDonell said.
McDonell said that the use of shading on the new ballots is confusing to voters. He added the absentee ballots have already been sent out within Dane County, requiring unnecessary reprints for a functional system which would only encourage unnecessary spending.
