Local political expert says Tuesday's election in Wisconsin could have low voter turnout

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- We're about 48 hours away from Wisconsin's spring election on Tuesday, April 2.

The ballot features several local referendums for school districts, emergency services, as well as races for school boards.

But other than the presidential primaries, the only statewide issue is on two constitutional amendments -- both of which could impact how elections are administered in Wisconsin.

That's why UWM Professor Emeritus Mordecai Lee believes we could see a lower voter turnout than normal.

“The difficulty is that we can’t say that for all of southeast Wisconsin there’s 'blank,' because there is nothing except for the two constitutional amendments," Lee said. “My guess is it’s going to be a medium turnout which makes predicting the results totally unpredictable.”

Plus, voters can already predict who will be each party's nominee, as both President Biden and former president Trump have already secured the number of delegates needed.

“One of the problems with the presidential primary in Wisconsin is that we’re so late in the season," Lee said. “If there is a true presidential race still going on, you could have 2,000,000 people voting. But there’s really nothing on the ballot."

Wisconsinites also have the option to vote uninstructed, which Lee said some use to send messages to candidates.

“Indicate your dissatisfaction with these two potential nominees so that there will be a reflection of public opinion not being sort of unanimously in favor of these two or without any serious concerns," Lee said.

On Tuesday, Trump will also hold his first rally of the 2024 presidential race in Green Bay.

It comes after several recent visits from President Biden, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris.