Here & Now

Rock County Clerk Urges Gableman to Give Her a Call

Frederica Freyberg:

We unpacked some of what’s been going on with the investigation. Former Justice Gableman grabbed a blaring headline last week that read “Head of Republican review of Wisconsin elections says he does not understand how elections work.” Days later, on a Milwaukee radio program, he doubled down, both pushing back against that reporting and reiterating his lack of understanding.

Michael Gableman:

I, like most people, do not have a comprehensive understanding of how the mechanics of an election work. When I put my paper ballot into the machine, I’m left with no other thing to do except sort of hope for the best.

Frederica Freyberg:

Plenty of people do know how the mechanics of an election work. We asked one of them, Rock County Clerk Lisa Tollefson. So is that what you’re doing, you know, watching ballots go in and crossing your fingers?

Lisa Tollefson:

Absolutely not. We have so many checks and balances in place to verify the number of ballots matches the number of people who voted.

Frederica Freyberg:

But to that direct question about ballots into the machine. What literally happens then to that ballot?

Lisa Tollefson:

So an image is taken of that ballot and it’s stored until the polls close on election night. They verify that all of the voters have voted who were in line at 8:00. They make sure all the absentee ballots have been processed. Then they hit the close poll button and it tabulates everything and calculates the votes. It then randomizes the images so that your vote remains anonymous and it prints out a report. Those reports that print out are what we certify the election off of after the election at our board of canvases.

Frederica Freyberg:

It’s true, the election process builds in multiple layers of precision before, during and after.

Lisa Tollefson:

So you know if someone’s broken into them or not.

Frederica Freyberg:

It’s being described as kind of a mystery, right? And it’s not.

Lisa Tollefson:

It’s not a mystery. Everything is done in the open.

Frederica Freyberg:

Like all clerks in Wisconsin, Tollefson received this letter from Gableman’s Office of Special Counsel, requesting preservation of election records, which she says clerks already do. And, like others, the letter landed in her spam folder because it came from a Gmail account. As to former Justice Gableman’s lack of comprehensive knowledge of the mechanics of an election, Tollefson says he’s welcome to give her a call.

Lisa Tollefson:

I can go on for hours on our election process. In fact, I do. I teach lots of classes on it. So if he’s got questions, please ask.