Madison investigators concluded in their report released Tuesday that former City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl’s failure to process 193 ballots in November broke city policy and breached the contract duties of her position.
A timeline of actions detailed in the report shows Witzel-Behl's failure to notify any city or state officials of the failure to process ballots, including the City Attorney, the Mayor’s Office and the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC).
A courier bag of ballots was found by an hourly employee on Nov. 12, just one week after the election. The employee notified Witzel-Behl via Microsoft Teams about the ballots but did not receive any further instructions, according to the report.
Witzel-Behl claims that she did instruct two employees to notify the WEC of the ballots, but there is no evidence of these conversations.
The report did not find any other city officials or staff at the City Clerk’s Office to be at fault for the unprocessed ballots.
Witzel-Behl resigned April 14 from her position as City of Madison Clerk. City Attorney Michael Haas is serving as the acting Clerk until a permanent replacement is found.
The city said in a media release that the investigation had closed because of Witzel-Behl’s resignation, but the Wisconsin Elections Commission still has an active investigation into the incident.
The report did not find that any state laws or ordinances were violated. However, investigators note that an investigation by the WEC is seperate from the City’s findings and could find state violations.
Investigators deferred to the recommendations by the WEC, which included establishing better processes for counting and securing absentee ballots, ensuring better communication for all staff regarding protocol and establishing clear leadership structures and accountability for all staff.
Vanessa Gavilan is the city news editor for The Daily Cardinal.
