Wisconsin is seeing a surge in early absentee voting for the 2025 Spring Election. The April 1 election has caught the nation's attention with another high-stakes state Supreme Court race breaking campaign spending records as the most expensive ever in the country.
As of Wednesday, 85,612 people had voted by in-person absentee or by mailing in their absentee ballot.
Compared to this same time two years ago for another high-profile state Supreme Court race in 2023, when a total of 56,819 absentee ballots were cast two weeks prior to Election Day, that marks a 50% increase.
The April election features Dane County Judge Susan Crawford and Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel battling for a 10-year term that will influence the court's direction.
Watch: Early voting surge in Wisconsin: April Election turnout off to fast start
Tuesday was the first day of in-person absentee voting, with 34,036 voters visiting their clerk's office to fill out a ballot. That compares to 15,435 in 2023, an increase of 120%.
Ballots are not counted until Election Day.
The state's three largest counties—Milwaukee, Dane, and Waukesha—have the highest total early voting numbers. Milwaukee and Dane counties are key voting blocs for Democrats.
Meanwhile, Waukesha County, a reliable Republican stronghold, led the first day of in-person voting.
More than 1.8 million people voted in the 2023 April election.
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