Green Bay Clerk Placed on Leave as State Probes Duplicate Ballot Errors

Green Bay City Clerk Celestine Jeffreys has been placed on administrative leave after her office mailed duplicate absentee ballots to voters ahead of Wisconsin’s August primary, marking the second such incident this year. The Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) voted unanimously last week to open a formal investigation into the errors, which city officials attributed to a printing issue.

Explainer Election Integrity in America: Safeguarding Voter Trust and Ballot Security

The repeated ballot duplication has heightened scrutiny of Green Bay’s election administration, with state and local Republican leaders arguing that ongoing mistakes undermine public trust in the electoral process.

The latest error affected voters in at least eight wards, representing about 15% of Green Bay’s 52 wards, according to city communications director Michael Bergman. Over 5,000 absentee ballots had been mailed by June 25, and the duplication was discovered two days later. The city has not specified how many voters received multiple ballots, but officials said only one ballot per eligible voter would be counted. Jeffreys stated, “I assure our voters that only one ballot per eligible voter will be tabulated. I encourage any voter with questions to contact our office directly.” Green Bay Press Gazette

State Investigation and City Response

The WEC’s decision to investigate follows a similar incident in April, when 152 voters received duplicate absentee ballots, also attributed to a printing error. The commission directed the city clerk to submit a plan ensuring only one vote is counted per person and to outline steps to prevent future duplications. Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich called the errors “unacceptable” but maintained, “we have no concerns with the security or propriety of the electoral process.” He said the city would cooperate fully with the WEC and work to prevent a recurrence. Wisconsin Public Radio

"It’s not an ‘oops.’ There’s a long track record of this. It’s up to the mayor’s office and the city council to remove her from that position and hold her accountable, and when that fails to happen we’re supposed to have WEC do it."

— Doug Reich, chairman, Republican Party of Brown County

Republican Party of Wisconsin chair Brian Schimming called the WEC investigation a “necessary first step.” Local GOP leaders, including Brown County chairman Doug Reich, have criticized both the city and state officials for what they describe as a pattern of election law violations and insufficient accountability.

Previous Incidents and Broader Context

Jeffreys’ office has faced repeated allegations of election law violations in recent years. In April, the WEC found probable cause that Jeffreys broke state law by sending out duplicate ballots. City officials argued that only one voter returned two ballots, and that safeguards were in place to prevent double-counting. The Republican Party of Wisconsin filed its complaint after a Green Bay voter received two ballots for the same election and said the clerk’s office did not respond to concerns.

The scrutiny of Green Bay’s election administration comes amid broader debates over election integrity in Wisconsin. In 2022, a judge issued a temporary injunction requiring Green Bay to allow Republican poll watchers full access during early voting, following legal action by the Republican National Committee. The city’s handling of absentee ballots and interactions with partisan observers have been a recurring source of tension.

Political Reactions and Next Steps

Green Bay could play a pivotal role in upcoming statewide races, and the ongoing investigation has drawn attention from state and national figures. Republican Congressman Tom Tiffany, who is running for governor, posted on social media that “Green Bay has once AGAIN sent duplicate absentee ballots, and it’s unknown how many were mailed.” He called for a “full audit and accountability.”

WEC chair Ann Jacobs, a Democratic appointee, described the repeated errors as “unconscionable” and said, “Any assurances we had after the first time it happened that it wouldn’t happen again are thin at this point.”

While city officials insist the integrity of the vote count is not at risk, critics argue that repeated administrative errors erode voter confidence. The WEC has yet to announce when it will conclude its investigation or what actions may follow.