13 Milwaukee drop box locations will open Monday for August primary

Milwaukee voters hoping to return their absentee ballots to drop boxes for the Aug. 13 election will be able to do so Monday after 10:30 a.m.

After the state Supreme Court restored the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in a July 5 decision, the Milwaukee Election Commission said it would offer 12 and possibly 14 drop boxes by the Aug. 13 partisan primary election.

Thirteen drop boxes will be available for the August election, primarily at public libraries. Two drop boxes are not listed on the Election Commission's website as open — Washington Park Library, where the drop box is being evaluated and possibly replaced, and Martin Luther King Library, which is under construction.

While early voting in the primary started July 30, the Election Commission's website says the drop boxes will not be operational until Monday. They will be open until 6 p.m. Election Day, Aug. 13.

The drop boxes will also be open for the Nov. 5 election in Wisconsin, which features the presidential contest plus the candidates who advance from the August ballot.

Voters in Milwaukee still have multiple other options for returning their absentee ballots. The U.S. Postal Service recommends mailing absentee ballots at least seven days before the election — Aug. 6, in this case — so clerks receive them in time.

Voters can also bring their ballots to an early voting site, which runs through Aug. 10 in Milwaukee. On Election Day, Milwaukee voters are typically asked to drop off their ballots at City Hall's Room 501 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or at the Elections Operations Center at 1901 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m.

The election commission was also involved in administering the July 2 and July 30 special election for an open state Senate seat in Milwaukee County, which isn't typical timing for holding an election. The commission had made clear that the drop boxes would not be ready in time for absentee voters in that election.

After the state Supreme Court reversed its decision banning drop boxes, the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission met in mid-July to issue guidance to clerks about providing absentee ballot drop boxes.

Those recommendations included clearly marking drop boxes and communicating the last date to submit ballots. WEC also recommended that clerks place drop boxes in well-lit areas, report any damage and empty boxes before they become full. It recommended documenting the time, person and number of ballots counted when boxes are emptied.

Alison Dirr contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee drop boxes will open Monday for August primary