The Town of Iola will hold its annual town caucus for the purpose of nominating candidates to appear on the spring election ballot will be held on Monday, January 3, at 5 p.m. The caucus will be held at the Town of Iola Hall. The address is 170 Depot Street, Iola.
Procedures
“The caucus is a method that may be used by towns and villages for nominating candidates to be placed on the Spring Election ballot. The caucus is open to the public, but only qualified electors of the municipality may nominate and vote for candidates. A person is not required to be a registered voter in order to participate in the caucus,” the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) noted. “There is no spring primary for town or village offices when candidates are nominated by caucus.”
“Only qualified electors of the municipality may nominate and vote for candidates at a caucus. Any person who is a United States citizen, 18 years of age or older, who has resided within the municipality for at least 28 days before the caucus is a qualified elector,” it continues. “Any person whose name does not appear on the voter list or the MyVote Wisconsin website may be asked to provide some type of documentation to establish that the individual is a qualified elector of the municipality. A qualified elector of the municipality may nominate themselves as a candidate for office.”
“When nominations are taken from the floor, each nomination must receive a second. After each nomination is made and seconded, the caucus chairperson must ask, ‘Are there any more nominations?’ and if hearing none, must announce, ‘Nominations are closed,” the WEC document states. “The chairperson should ensure that all eligible attendees have the opportunity to nominate a candidate if they wish to do so.”
“For those offices where only one person is to be elected and only one or two candidates are nominated, there is no need to conduct a vote. If more than two persons have been nominated, a vote must be conducted at the caucus to reduce the number of candidates to two. If a vote is required, the caucus chairperson will announce the names of all candidates. Each elector at the caucus is entitled to vote for one candidate. The two candidates receiving the highest number of votes are nominated and certified to the municipal clerk by the caucus chairperson and tellers,” the WEC document continues.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Does Wisconsin’s photo ID law apply to caucus procedures? No. The attendee may need to provide some type of documentation that proves he or she is a qualified elector of the municipality in order to nominate candidates.
2. Can members of the governing body nominate candidates? Yes, any qualified elector of the municipality may nominate candidates at the caucus.
3. Can a person who was nominated at the caucus but not selected run as a registered write-in candidate? Yes. Any qualified elector can run as a registered write-in candidate.
4. If a candidate fails to submit the required documents by the deadline, can a person who was nominated but not selected be chosen as a replacement? Not automatically. The caucus would have to be reconvened to take nominations for that office.
5. What is a teller? A teller is a person selected at the caucus to count the votes if necessary.
6. What if the clerk is not available on the deadline to receive the ballot documentation through 5 p.m. on the fifth day? The clerk should appoint someone to be available through the deadline.
7. What if the municipal clerk is on the ballot? The municipal clerk can be present at the caucus and nominate candidates. The clerk’s duties at the caucus are only administrative.
8. Is the clerk required to notify candidates that their name will not be on the ballot due to not submitting the required documentation by the filing deadline? No, but it’s recommended that the clerk inform candidates if they fail to qualify for ballot status.