1. Am I allowed to vote in Wisconsin?
In Wisconsin, you can register and vote if:
- You’re a U.S. citizen;
- You’ll be 18 or older on Election Day;
- A court hasn’t taken away your right to vote because you are incompetent;
- You’re not currently in jail or prison, or on probation, parole, or extended supervision, for a felony (or for any treason or bribery conviction), and
- You will have been a Wisconsin resident for at least 10 days on Election Day. (Under Wisconsin law, students (including out-of-state students) can choose their “voting residence” either as their college address or as their family/ parents “home” address. Of course, students can only vote in ONE place!)
2. Where can I vote?:
- Students who consider college their voting residence can register and vote at the polling location for the place you live at school (on or off campus), OR
- Students who consider parents’ home (in WI) their voting residence need to register and vote at the voting location for your family home, and then go vote at home in person or ask the clerk from your home municipality to mail you an absentee ballot (you do have to provide a copy of photo ID to get the ballot by mail). (Students whose family home is outside Wisconsin need to check with elections officials in their home states about how to get an absentee ballot mailed to them.)
3. To register (at college or family home) you have to show a document with your first and last name, and current (voting) address.
- The document must be valid on the day it is used to register.
- You can show paper or electronic copies of these documents.
- If it’s on your smart phone or tablet, you just show it to the person registering you.
- You can even register when you early vote, or at the polls on Election Day.
4. The registration document with your name and current address can be many things, including:
- a recent utility bill (electric, gas, cell or landline phone, cable, internet, etc.);
- a lease (unless you are registering by mail);
- a WI drivers license or ID card;
- any WI college/university photo ID along with a tuition fee receipt;
- a list of students living in a college dorm, that the college gives to the municipal clerk;
- any government document or check like:
- Public high school, public technical college, public college and public university letters and documents, including: admissions correspondence, financial aid notices, report cards, and class schedules; and
- Federal or state government financial aid letters & notices (not from private entities like Sallie Mae or Great Lakes Higher Ed. Corp.)
- Many other documents (see, Answers to Some Voter Registration Questions )
5. To cast a ballot, you also need photo ID.
Most voters need one of the following kinds of photo ID to vote:
- Student ID from a Wisconsin college, technical college, or university IF the ID has name, photo, signature, issuance date, & expiration date no more than 2 years from issuance date, PLUS proof of enrollment (like a class schedule or tuition fee receipt).
- Scroll down and check this link to see if your college has a regular (or special) ID that meets these voting rules: http://www.commoncausewisconsin.org/p/voting-resources.html
- Wisconsin drivers' license (current or expired since 11/4/14)
- Wisconsin photo ID card (from DMV) (current or expired since 11/4/14)
- U.S. Passport (current or expired since 11/4/14)
- Uniformed services (military) ID (current or expired since 11/4/14, or “indefinite” with no expiration date)
- Veteran’s Administration ID (VA ID) (unexpired)
- Photo ID from federally recognized Indian tribe in Wisconsin
- Naturalization certificate from the two years before an election
- Receipt from DMV from applying for license or ID card within 60 days.
6. If you have more questions about photo ID, check out these Top 10 Voter ID Questions (and Answers): http://aclu-wi.org/story/top-10-voter-id-questions
If you have other questions or concerns about your voting rights, “Like” Wisconsin Election Protection on Facebook or follow @EPWisco on Twitter and post your questions or concerns there. If you do not have access to Facebook or Twitter, you can email questions or concerns to vote@aclu-wi.org and we will respond as soon as we can. You can also call the Wisconsin Elections Commission at 1-866-VOTE-WIS (1-866-868-3947) or check out their voter information center, http://www.gab.wi.gov/voters
