Why the absentee votes in the Dean Loumos vs. Wayne Strong race aren't tabulated

The April 2 election included a hotly contested race for Seat 3 of the Madison School Board. The race was so close that the winner was not declared until April 9 [1], when Wayne Strong conceded to Dean Loumos. The County Clerk’s office reports [2] that Loumos won with 50.2 percent of the vote, just 279 votes more than Strong’s 49.4 percent.

But what about the absentee ballot breakdown?

After receiving an inquiry from twitter, Madison Commons sought the breakdown of absentee voters in the School Board race only to learn from the Madison City Clerk’s office that absentee ballots are not tabulated together. Each absentee ballots is processed in the precinct of the voter who completed it, and it’s included and counted with all the other Election Day ballots.

The absentee ballots are “mixed in for voter secrecy,” said Sherri Endres, chief deputy clerk in Dane County.

The Madison School Board races include ballots from Madison, Fitchburg, Middleton, Blooming Grove, Burke, and the villages of Maple Bluff and Shorewood Hills. 

In the other Madison School Board races, current Board President James Howard beat Greg Packnett. TJ Mertz, who ran essentially unopposed after his opponent Sarah Manski dropped out, easily took another seat.

Please feel free to share your questions with Madison Commons in the comment sections of our stories, on our Facebook page [3], or on twitter: @madcommons [4]