178 Relating to: counting votes for write-in candidates.

  Date of enactment: April 2, 2014
2013 Assembly Bill 419   Date of publication*: April 3, 2014

* Section 991.11, Wisconsin Statutes : Effective date of acts. "Every act and every portion of an act enacted by the legislature over the governor's partial veto which does not expressly prescribe the time when it takes effect shall take effect on the day after its date of publication."

2013 WISCONSIN ACT 178

An Act to repeal 7.50 (2) (e); and to create 7.50 (2) (em) of the statutes; relating to: counting votes for write-in candidates.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

Section 1 . 7.50 (2) (e) of the statutes is repealed.

Section 2 . 7.50 (2) (em) of the statutes is created to read:

7.50 (2) (em) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, write-in votes shall only be counted if no candidates have been certified to appear on the ballot. If candidates have been certified to appear on the ballot, write-in votes may only be counted for candidates who file registration statements under s. 11.05 (2g). If a candidate certified to appear on the ballot dies or withdraws before the election, all write-in votes shall be counted. When write-in votes are counted, every vote shall be counted for the candidate for whom it was intended, if the elector's intent can be ascertained from the ballot itself.