WISCONSIN: Uncounted Ballots and Cookie Extravaganza Provide Strong Case for Stricter Election Oversight
Nearly 200 ballots went missing and uncounted while the clerk in charge was baking cookies.
Neglecting to count votes through error or fraud is rare compared with other types of electoral shenanigans. But a recent Wisconsin case shows it does happen and underscores the need for strict voter integrity laws and continued electoral vigilance.
On July 17, the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) revealed that former Madison city clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl violated state election laws, resulting in nearly 200 absentee ballots going uncounted during last year’s election. The WEC’s report blames a “confluence of errors” and a “complete lack of leadership” in the clerk’s office for the embarrassing revelation. Although it didn’t alter any race outcomes, it highlights the risks of tabulation errors when sloppy or corrupt officials are charged with counting votes.
Commissioners expressed shock at the unprofessionalism with which Witzel-Behl handled the situation. Two bags contained 193 absentee ballots that never reached polling sites. This included 68 discovered in a tabulator bin a week after the election and 125 found in a courier bag in December.
The report uncovered conflicting testimony between Witzel-Behl and her staff on when they discovered the ballots and who should have informed the WEC at what time. The WEC concluded that Witzel-Behl’s office had an opportunity to count the first batch of missing ballots after they discovered them but did not.
More troubling, her office did not notify the WEC until December 18, well after the certification of results on Nov. 29. The report blamed inadequate tracking procedures and poor staff training for allowing the oversight to continue.
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Who Cares About Ballots When We Have Cookies?
Votebeat obtained emails detailing what Witzel-Behl was doing during this time. She took off work before the vote certification, on Nov. 17, and didn’t return until Dec. 6. She devoted part of that time to a baking staycation. She even invited her fellow election officials to a “cookie extravaganza,” featuring “100 different types” of cookies.
According to the WEC, she knew about the first batch of uncounted ballots before taking off work. Staff discovered the second batch of uncounted ballots when it was about time to put the first batch of cookies in the oven.
Witzel-Behl claimed she learned of the ballot emergency on Dec. 10. That might explain why she sent an urgent email to colleagues that day, including Deputy Clerk Jim Verbick, announcing she had three cars reserved for cookie deliveries. To handle the day’s pressing issue efficiently, she suggested they make one cookie delivery each to the library.
On Dec. 13—five days before her office found time to notify the WEC of the missing ballots—she emailed 16 election staffers from her office and other city departments to announce, “We still have several packages of cookies, so feel free to pick a few agencies for another delivery,”
One person close to her office told Votebeat, “For some people, baking is calming,” adding, “She worked her ass off” to bake those cookies.
On Dec. 18—two days before Witzel-Behl’s office found time to notify the WEC of the missing ballots—a Madison transportation department employee asked if she’d baked the cookies for the entire building or for the entire universe.
The WEC voted 5–1 to confirm Witzel-Behl broke five election laws but declined to recommend criminal prosecution. Commissioner Bob Spindell (R) was the lone no vote. He claimed the error owed to the clerk office’s complicated system and poor management. Although the Dane County District Attorney could bring charges, it indicates it is unlikely to do so without a criminal referral from the WEC.
Madison city attorney and interim clerk Michael Haas is pushing back against some of the WEC’s remedial recommendations, claiming they exceed its authority under state law to enforce. The WEC has given Madison until Aug. 7 to implement its own reforms, at which time it will vote on whether to order it to make additional changes.
These types of errors defraud voters and sow distrust in elections, which drive down turnout. Wisconsin is the tightest swing state in the country, where recent presidential elections were decided by fewer than 25,000 votes. This case reinforces the need for states and municipalities to hire competent election workers and maintain strict election integrity laws that provide clear chain of custody rules, with strict penalties for violations.
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