Kenosha County Clerk Regi Waligora has issued a statement to inform residents about recent mailings from the Center for Voter Information. According to Waligora, these mailers are sent by a private, third-party organization and are not connected with official election authorities.
Waligora clarified that although the mailing may appear official, it is only an absentee ballot request form and not an actual absentee ballot. She noted that Wisconsin law allows private organizations to send voter registration or absentee ballot request forms, but election officials do not oversee these third-party mailings and do not send unsolicited voter forms.
She warned that information on these forms might be inaccurate. "These mailings cause confusion, especially among voters who have not requested an absentee ballot and generally do not vote absentee," Waligora said. "Personally, I have received this type of mailing, addressed to my adult children who have not lived or voted in Wisconsin for over five years. My guess is the third-party organizations are using outdated voter lists, which may contain incorrect information."
Waligora added that while some forms arrive pre-filled with recipient details, receiving such a mailing does not mean a voter's official records are incorrect. She encouraged voters to verify their registration status at myvote.wi.gov/en-us and check if they have an absentee ballot request on file at myvote.wi.gov/en-us/Track-My-Ballot.
"It is important to know only a voter can request an absentee ballot for themself, unless the voter has a disability and requires authorized assistance with the act of requesting the absentee ballot," Waligora said. "If someone other than the voter or a lawful assistor requests an absentee ballot, they could be referred to a district attorney for prosecution."
She also explained that names and addresses used in these mailers are public information available through state records and are not protected as personal identifying information.
"If you receive such a mailing, and you have any questions or concerns please report it to your municipal clerk," Waligora said. "If you receive a mailing from the Center for Voter Information or any other such third party, you may contact them and asked to be removed from their mailing list."
In related local data, Kenosha County schools had 25,402 students enrolled during the 2023-24 school year. Of those students, 55.6% were white (14,124), 25.7% were Hispanic (6,528), making them the second largest group in county schools; Black students made up 10.4% (2,642). American Indian students accounted for just 0.2% of enrollment in county schools during this period according to state education data: https://dpi.wi.gov/
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