PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis. — The Village of Pleasant Prairie Clerk’s Office, headed by Village Clerk Jane Snell, sent duplicate absentee ballot packets to voters just eight days before the November 3 general election, according to a village announcement Tuesday. The village said the employee responsible is no longer employed, but did not disclose how many voters received duplicate ballots or how the error escaped detection before the packets were mailed.

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Snell heads the office responsible for administering village elections and handling absentee ballots. Although the village’s announcement attributed the duplicate mailings to an unnamed employee, it did not address Snell’s oversight of the process or identify the employee’s position. The village has publicly identified Snell as its clerk in other recent communications.

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According to the October 27 release, the duplicate packets were issued Monday, October 26, during the processing and preparation of absentee ballot mailings. The village described the number of affected voters as “limited,” but provided no figure to support that description.

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The announcement said election officials began reviewing absentee ballot records after discovering the problem to determine how many voters were affected. It did not explain who discovered the duplicate mailings, when they were discovered, or whether any duplicate ballots had already been returned.

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The village stated that duplicate ballots will not be counted and said it is cooperating with election authorities. However, the release did not identify those authorities or describe the specific procedures officials will use to identify and prevent duplicate ballots from being counted.

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The village also said the employee responsible “is no longer employed by the Village.” It did not identify the employee, say whether the person was fired or resigned, or explain how responsibility for the mistake was determined.

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Officials said they are reviewing ballot issuance and tracking procedures. Possible changes listed in the release include additional verification, improved documentation, reconciliation of ballot records and a second review of ballot issuance, but the announcement did not specify which changes had actually been implemented.

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Voters who receive duplicate absentee ballots should contact the Village Clerk’s Office for instructions, according to the announcement. The village cautioned voters against submitting more than one ballot.

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