The city clerk of Wisconsin’s capital, Madison, has resigned following investigations into her failure to count nearly 200 absentee ballots during the November election.
On Monday, Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway’s office announced that City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl had officially stepped down.
According to the mayor’s spokesperson, Dylan Brogan, she submitted her resignation last Thursday. However, due to a clause in her contract that gave her several days to reconsider, the announcement was delayed.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission began an investigation in early January after discovering that 192 absentee ballots had gone uncounted.
Witzel-Behl did not notify the commission until December 18, more than a month after the election and after the canvassing process had concluded.
Although the missed ballots didn’t impact the results of any races or referendums, four Madison voters whose votes went uncounted have each filed $175,000 claims against the city and Dane County as a first step toward legal action.
This incident followed another error in September, when Witzel-Behl’s office mistakenly sent out up to 2,000 duplicate absentee ballots.
In March, Mayor Rhodes-Conway suspended Witzel-Behl and launched an internal investigation, citing the need to preserve public trust in the elections process.
That investigation has now concluded, and a report could be released by the end of April. Meanwhile, the Wisconsin Elections Commission is expected to discuss its findings during a meeting on Thursday.
Witzel-Behl was earning an annual salary of $152,300. Since her suspension, City Attorney Mike Haas has been filling in as interim city clerk. Under his supervision, the April 1 spring election reportedly ran smoothly.