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Can anyone order Wisconsin absentee ballots 'for anyone and ship the ballots anywhere in the world'?

By Tom Kertscher
NO

Only registered Wisconsin voters can use Wisconsin’s MyVote website to request absentee ballots by mail.

The Wisconsin Election Commission told Wisconsin Watch that MyVote does not automatically send an absentee ballot to the requester. Requests generate an email to the requester’s municipal clerk, who determines whether the voter has provided information, including a photo ID, to receive an absentee ballot.

MyVote is the most common way Wisconsin voters request absentee ballots.

Wisconsin-based HOT Government, which alleged fraud in Wisconsin in the 2020 election, falsely claimed Nov. 2, 2024, that “anybody from around the world” can use MyVote to “illegally order absentee ballots for anyone and ship the ballots anywhere in the world.”

In 2022, the organization's president Harry Wait was charged with four crimes for allegedly using MyVote to request absentee ballots for two Wisconsin elected officials be mailed to his Racine-area home. The case is pending.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Wisconsin Elections Commission Vote absentee by mail
HOT Government HOT Government
Wisconsin Justice Department Union Grove Man Charged with Election Fraud
Wisconsin Circuit Court Access Harry Wait case summary
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Wisconsin Watch, the news arm of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, increases the quality and quantity of investigative reporting in Wisconsin, while training current and future investigative journalists. Its work fosters an informed citizenry and strengthens democracy.
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