Early voting begins in Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The Zeidler Municipal Building is one of 10 early voting sites in the city of Milwaukee available over the next two weeks. Paulina Gutierrez, executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission, says the city is working to make sure early voting is convenient for everyone.

“We really focused the hours on working families so that they don’t have to get out early,” Gutierrez said. “We also have Sunday hours, five sites that are open the Sunday before Election Day as well.”

There was a line waiting for polls to open at 9 a.m. Tuesday, but voters like Ollie Wilks told CBS 58 they did not wait long.

“Five minutes… went easy,” Wilks said.

One of the early voting motivators for Jeffery Luecking was the desire to be done with this election cycle.

“It went very well. It’s my birthday today and I got my civic duty out of the way,” he said.

Gutierrez says anyone eligible to vote on Election Day is eligible to vote early.

“City of Milwaukee residents can go to any early voting sites here in Milwaukee, which is great. You need to have a valid proof of ID so that you can vote just like at a polling location. We can also register you to vote at early voting, so along with your ID, you also need a valid proof of residence,” she said.

The votes cast at early voting sites over the next two weeks can’t begin to be counted until 7 a.m. on Election Day. Gutierrez says with the sheer volume of votes cast absentee, final results from Milwaukee aren’t expected until after midnight — the early morning hours of Nov. 6.