7.30 Appointment of election officials.
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7.30 Appointment of election officials.
(1)Number.
(a)Except as authorized under par.
(b), there shall be 7 inspectors for each polling place at each election. Except as authorized in par.
(b), in municipalities where voting machines are used, the municipal governing body may reduce the number of inspectors to 5. A municipal governing body may provide for the appointment of additional inspectors whenever more than one voting machine is used or wards are combined under s. 5.15
(b). A municipal governing body may provide by ordinance for the selection of alternate officials or the selection of 2 or more sets of officials to work at different times on election day, and may permit the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners to establish different working hours for different officials assigned to the same polling place. Alternate officials shall also be appointed in a number sufficient to maintain adequate staffing of polling places. Except for inspectors who are appointed under par.
(b)and officials who are appointed without regard to party affiliation under sub.
(c), additional officials shall be appointed in such a manner that the total number of officials is an odd number and the predominant party under sub.
(2)is represented by one more official than the other party.
(b)Each municipality may appoint one additional inspector to serve at each polling place without regard to party affiliation who shall serve as a greeter to answer questions and to direct electors to the proper locations for registration and voting and who shall be available to substitute for other election officials who must leave the room during the voting process.
(2)Qualifications and procedure.
(a)Only election officials appointed under this section or s. 6.875 may conduct an election. Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph and in ss. 7.15
(k)and 7.52
(b), each election official shall be a qualified elector of a county in which the municipality where the official serves is located, and each chief inspector shall be a qualified elector of the municipality in which the chief inspector serves. If no qualified candidate for chief inspector is available or if the chief inspector is appointed to fill a vacancy under par.
(b), the person so appointed need not be a qualified elector of the municipality. If a municipal clerk or deputy clerk is appointed to fill a vacancy under par.
(b), the clerk or deputy clerk need not be a resident of the county, but shall be a resident of the state. No more than 2 individuals holding the office of clerk or deputy clerk may serve without regard to county residency in any municipality at any election. All officials appointed under this section shall be able to read and write the English language, be capable, and be of good understanding, and may not be a candidate for any office to be voted for at an election at which they serve. An individual holding a local public office, as defined in s. 19.42
(7w), may be appointed to serve as an election official under this section without having to vacate the local public office. In 1st class cities, they may hold no public office other than notary public. Except as authorized under subs.
(b)and
(c), all inspectors shall be affiliated with one of the 2 recognized political parties which received the largest number of votes for president, or governor in nonpresidential general election years, in the ward or combination of wards served by the polling place at the last election. Excluding the inspector who may be appointed under sub.
(b), the party which received the largest number of votes is entitled to one more inspector than the party receiving the next largest number of votes at each polling place. Whenever 2 or more inspectors are required to perform a function within a polling place and both parties that are entitled to submit nominees have done so, the chief inspector shall assign, insofar as practicable, an equal number of inspectors from the nominees of each party.
(am)Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, a pupil who is 16 or 17 years of age and who is enrolled in grades 9 to 12 in a public or private school, in a home-based private educational program, as defined in s. 115.001
(3g), or in a tribal school, as defined in s. 115.001
(15m), may serve as an inspector at the polling place serving the pupil’s residence, with the approval of the pupil’s parent or guardian. Any pupil who has at least a 3.0 grade point average or the equivalent may serve. In addition, a school board, governing body of a private school, as defined in s. 115.001
(3d), tribal school, or administrator of a home-based private educational program may establish criteria for service by a pupil who does not have at least a 3.0 grade point average or the equivalent. A pupil may serve as an inspector at a polling place under this paragraph only if at least one election official at the polling place other than the chief inspector is a qualified elector of this state. No pupil may serve as chief inspector at a polling place under this paragraph. Before appointment by any municipality of a pupil as an inspector under this paragraph, the municipal clerk shall obtain written authorization from the pupil’s parent or guardian for the pupil to serve for the election for which he or she is appointed. In addition, if a pupil does not have at least a 3.0 grade point average or the equivalent, the municipal clerk shall obtain written certification from the principal of the school where the pupil is enrolled, or the administrator of the home-based private educational program in which the pupil is enrolled, that the pupil meets any criteria established by the school board, governing body, or administrator of the home-based private educational program for service as an inspector. Upon appointment of a pupil to serve as an inspector, the municipal clerk shall notify the principal of the school where the pupil is enrolled, or the administrator of the home-based private educational program in which the pupil is enrolled, of the name of the pupil and the date of the election at which the pupil has been appointed to serve.
(b)When a vacancy occurs in an office under this section, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment of the municipal clerk. Unless the vacancy occurs in the position of an inspector appointed under sub.
(b), the vacancy shall be filled from the remaining names on the lists submitted under sub.
(4)or from additional names submitted by the chairperson of the county party committee of the appropriate party under sub.
(4)whenever names are submitted under sub.
(d). If the vacancy is due to candidacy, sickness or any other temporary cause, the appointment shall be a temporary appointment and effective only for the election at which the temporary vacancy occurs. The same qualifications that applied to original appointees shall be required of persons who fill vacancies except that if a municipal clerk or deputy clerk fills the vacancy, the clerk or deputy, but not more than a total of 2 individuals in any municipality, may serve without regard to the clerk’s or deputy’s county of residence, if the clerk or deputy meets the other qualifications.
(c)The governing body of any municipality may require all persons serving as election officials to prove their ability to read and write English and to have a general knowledge of the election laws. Examinations may be given to prove the qualifications can be met. The municipal clerk shall ensure that all training meets the training requirements prescribed in rules promulgated by the commission under ss. 7.31 and 7.315 .
(3)Tabulators.
(a)Not less than 30 days before any election the governing body or board of election commissioners of any municipality, by resolution, may authorize the municipal clerk or executive director of the board of election commissioners to select and employ tabulators for any election. Such authorization applies to the elections specified in the resolution, and if not specified, applies until the authorization is modified or revoked.
(b)The tabulators shall assist and be under the direction of the election inspectors after the close of the polls.
(4)Appointments.