Recall Election Drew 78 Percent of Door County Voters

As the last ballots slipped into the box on June 5, Wisconsin municipal clerks and poll workers – who organized and staffed the recall elections – let out a collective sigh.

“Time between the primary and general election has been very crunched,” said Door County Clerk Jill Lau. “We’ve been in constant election mode since January.”

In Door County 14,793 voters turned out to vote in the recall election between Governor Scott Walker and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. There were 8,398 votes cast for Walker and 6,304 for Barrett.

That means 78 percent of registered Door County voters went to the polls, 4 percent more than the 2010 election when Walker and Barrett were first on the ballot. The 2008 presidential election drew 83 percent of registered voters in the county.

Political advertising, budget concerns, and issues involving unions and teachers may have helped draw the large crowd, said Brussels Clerk JoAnn Neinas.

“I saw a lot of voters come in that I don’t see often,” Neinas said. “There are people that vote in every election and people that come out for the very big ones. This was, in their minds, a very big one.”

But municipal clerks in Door County were ready for a big turnout based on the number of absentee ballots cast before June 5. By June 4, 430 voters in the city of Sturgeon Bay had requested absentee ballots, according to Sturgeon Bay City Clerk Stephanie Reinhardt.

“I probably haven’t had this many people in my office asking where to get absentee ballots…ever,” Lau said.

While the recall election gave Wisconsinites another chance to cast their votes, it also cost money.

“It kills the budget,” Neinas said. “Naturally we didn’t budget for this many elections, so we had to find the money to do the election.”

Neinas estimated the staffing for the primary and general recall elections cost $1,120, plus the cost of utilities and ballots. Nasewaupee Clerk Brenda Olsen said staffing the general election alone cost $1,400.

Walker won the election with 53 percent of the total Wisconsin vote, and 56.8 percent of the vote in Door County.

Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch also retained her post with 53 percent of the votes in Wisconsin.