Wisconsin 2026 elections

Contests on the board in Wisconsin

The general-election contests the Ledger tracks in Wisconsin, each with the raters' current call, the newest public polling and the money reported.

Candidate profiles from Wisconsin

WI-7 · Wisconsin

Michael Alfonso

Trump-endorsed first-time candidate for open WI-7: UW–Madison math graduate, former Bongino Show producer, Sean Duffy’s son-in-law; faces Democrat Fred Clark.

Read Michael Alfonso's recordThe race

Key dates and deadlines

Read from the Wisconsin Elections Commission on Sep 17, 2026. The authority's own page, linked beside each date, is the final word — confirm it before you act.

• Online registration deadline (MyVote Wisconsin)Wednesday, October 14, 2026 (20 days before the election) is the last day to register online through MyVote Wisconsin. Online registration requires a valid, unexpired Wisconsin driver license or Wisconsin ID card. After that date, registration is done in person, with proof of residence (see the in-person and Election Day registration items). city.milwaukee.gov
• Registration by mail deadline (postmarked by)A registration form sent by mail must be mailed — postmarked, in the City of Milwaukee Election Commission's words — no later than Wednesday, October 14, 2026 (20 days before the election). The signed form goes to the voter's municipal clerk, and a proof-of-residence document must always be provided when registering. city.milwaukee.gov
• In-person registration deadline (clerk's office or in-person absentee voting site)Friday, October 30, 2026 is the last day to register in person before Election Day, at the municipal clerk's office or at an in-person absentee voting site, with proof of residence. The City of Racine clerk says in-person registration runs until that Friday “at 5:00 p.m. or close of business, whichever is later,” and the Wauwatosa clerk's office is open until 5:00 p.m. that Friday; office and site hours differ by municipality. Registration is not available on the Saturday, Sunday or Monday before the election. city.milwaukee.gov
• Election Day registrationVoters may register at their polling place on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Proof of residence showing the voter's current name and current address is required every time a voter registers. city.milwaukee.gov
• Absentee ballots start going out by mailThursday, September 17, 2026 (47 days before the election): the City of Milwaukee Election Commission lists this date as the deadline to mail the first batch of absentee ballots, and the City of Madison Clerk's Office says it mails absentee ballots 47 days before each federal election. city.milwaukee.gov
• In-person absentee voting (early voting) may beginTuesday, October 20, 2026 — two weeks (14 days) before the election — is the first day municipal clerks may offer in-person absentee voting. Each municipality sets its own dates, hours and locations, so voters should check with their municipal clerk. city.milwaukee.gov
• Last day in-person absentee voting (early voting) may be offeredSunday, November 1, 2026 is the last day a municipality may offer in-person absentee voting; none takes place on Monday, November 2, 2026, the day before the election. Some municipalities stop sooner — Madison's sites close on October 31, 2026 — so check the municipal clerk's schedule. city.milwaukee.gov
• Deadline to request an absentee ballot by mail (application received by)5:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 29, 2026 (the fifth day before the election): the deadline to apply for an absentee ballot to be sent by mail; the municipal clerk must receive the application by then. Special application provisions apply to voters who are indefinitely confined to home or a care facility, in the military, hospitalized, or serving as a sequestered juror. clevelandwi.gov
• Deadline to return an absentee ballot (received by, not postmarked)The voted absentee ballot must be received by 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3, 2026, when the polls close. A postmark is not enough: ballots received after the polls close are not counted. Clerks advise mailing early: the Madison clerk recommends at least one week before Election Day, and the Milwaukee Election Commission no later than 8 days before the election. appletonwi.gov
• Election DayTuesday, November 3, 2026 — General Election. county.milwaukee.gov
• Poll hoursPolls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3, 2026. city.milwaukee.gov

Official voting tools

These links go to the state's own tools. The Ledger does not collect registrations or ballots.

Rules to know

• What to bring

  Wisconsin requires a photo ID to vote. The City of Milwaukee Election Commission says “All Wisconsin voters must show an acceptable photo ID before voting,” and the Milwaukee County Election Commission says a photo ID is required to receive a ballot in all Wisconsin elections. The Milwaukee and Madison election offices both list these as acceptable: a Wisconsin driver license; a Wisconsin ID card issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV); a U.S. passport; a military ID card; a veterans ID card (Madison lists it as an unexpired Veterans Affairs ID card); an ID card issued by a federally recognized Indian tribe in Wisconsin, even if expired; a certificate of naturalization issued within the two years before the election; an unexpired driver license receipt or state ID receipt from the DMV; and a photo ID from an accredited Wisconsin university or college that shows the date issued and the student's signature (Madison adds that it must show an expiration date within 2 years of issuance; if the card is expired, proof of current enrollment is also required). A driver license, state ID card, passport or military ID may be expired if it expired after the last November general election — November 5, 2024, on Madison's 2026 absentee ballot request form. The address on the ID does not have to be current. A state ID card for voting is free from the DMV. A request for an absentee ballot by mail must include a copy of the photo ID unless one is already on file with the clerk. Read from: city.milwaukee.gov

• Voting absentee by mail

  Any registered Wisconsin voter may vote absentee by mail; no reason or excuse is needed. The request must be made in writing: online through MyVote Wisconsin, or by mail or email to the voter's municipal clerk, with a copy of an acceptable photo ID unless one is already on file. The voter must be registered before a ballot can be issued. For the November 3, 2026 election the municipal clerk must receive the request by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 29, 2026; special provisions apply to voters who are indefinitely confined, in the military, hospitalized or serving as a sequestered juror. The voter marks the ballot in the presence of an adult witness and signs the certificate envelope; the witness signs it and writes the witness's address. The ballot must be received by 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, November 3, 2026; ballots received after the polls close are not counted, whatever the postmark. Voters return their own ballot, by mail or in person; a voter who needs help because of a disability may have a person of their choice return it. Return locations, including any ballot drop boxes, differ by municipality. Read from: city.milwaukee.gov

• Early voting (in-person absentee voting)

  Wisconsin's early voting is in-person absentee voting: the voter receives, marks and returns an absentee ballot at the municipal clerk's office or at another site the municipality sets up. It may run from two weeks before the election through the Sunday before it — October 20 through November 1, 2026 — and there is none on the day before the election. Each municipality chooses its own days, hours and locations inside that window: Milwaukee lists October 20 through November 1, while Madison lists October 20 through October 31. Bring an acceptable photo ID. A voter who is not yet registered can register at an in-person absentee voting site, with proof of residence, through Friday, October 30, 2026. Read from: cityofmadison.com

• Registering to vote, including on Election Day

  To register, a person must be a U.S. citizen, be 18 or older on Election Day and have lived at the current address for at least 28 consecutive days before the election. Registration is open online and by mail through October 14, 2026, in person through Friday, October 30, 2026, and again at the polling place on Election Day, November 3, 2026. Every registration requires proof of residence: a document showing the voter's current name and current address, such as a current and valid Wisconsin driver license or state ID card, a utility bill from the last 90 days, a bank statement, a paycheck, a government document, a real estate tax bill or a residential lease (the Madison clerk notes that a lease cannot be used to register by mail). Read from: clevelandwi.gov

• Track your absentee ballot

  An absentee ballot can be followed on MyVote Wisconsin (Track My Ballot). The City of Milwaukee Election Commission says “You can check on the status of your ballot at the myvote.wi.gov website,” and the City of Racine's voter guide says a voter who requested or mailed an absentee ballot can track it at MyVote.wi.gov and see when it was mailed and when it was received. Read from: city.milwaukee.gov

• Voting after a felony conviction

  A person convicted of a felony may register and vote once the sentence is complete, including any probation, parole or extended supervision. A person who is still serving a felony sentence — incarceration, parole, probation or extended supervision — is not eligible to vote. Read from: wauwatosa.net

On the statewide ballot

Offices on the November 3, 2026 statewide ballot, per the Wisconsin Elections Commission:

Governor · Lieutenant Governor · Attorney General · Secretary of State · State Treasurer

Questions and answers