Posted on 05/24/2012 4:28:17 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
Madison - Absentee voting in the June 5 recall election already far exceeds that of the primary earlier this month.
As of Wednesday, at least 90,000 Wisconsin voters had cast an absentee ballot, up from 68,000 in the May 8 recall primary, according to the Government Accountability Board. The state elections agency gathers those numbers in its voter registration system from just over a third of the municipalities in the state, including all the state's large cities.
The figures came out as a new poll showed Gov. Scott Walker with a 5 percentage point lead over Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, similar to his advantage in other recent polls. The survey by St. Norbert College and Wisconsin Public Radio had a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.
Democrats contend the race is tightening as spending begins to even in the final two weeks of the race, and both sides have said voter turnout will be key to determining the winner. The absentee figures add more evidence the election could be a high-turnout event.
"These numbers confirm anecdotal reports we are hearing from local election officials that there is strong interest in absentee voting," said Kevin Kennedy, the accountability board's director.
In-person absentee voting started Monday and runs through 5 p.m. on June 1. Some election offices, including the city of Milwaukee Election Commission, are offering extended hours to handle demand.
(Excerpt) Read more at jsonline.com ...
Not hand-wringing, just concerned. Walker should win, but even making the race look closer than it is can be problematic — a dominant Walker win vs. a narrow one tells a very different story, does it not?
Of course, the uptick in absentee ballots could also represent Republican voters who didn’t bother with the (essentially unopposed) primary. I guess I’m just too suspicious of Democrat fraud... my mind jumps there first. ;)
LOL. In my "can't win" scenario, attempting to steal the election is implicit.
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