Milwaukee, WI
The public watches as Milwaukee conducts a demonstration of Election Day voting equipment
How to register to vote in Wisconsin (you’ll need a have a photo ID)
Here’s how to register and vote in Wisconsin.
Nearly a dozen observers gathered at the City of Milwaukee Election Commission’s warehouse in the city’s Bay View neighborhood Saturday to watch as election workers conducted a public test of the equipment that will be used to tally votes on Nov. 5.
At one of the machines stood Election Commission Executive Director Paulina Gutiérrez fielding detailed questions from a group of eight. Behind her, test ballots whirred through one of the machines that lined the wall inside a back room of the warehouse.
The log of observers indicated that eight were from the Republican Party. Of the remaining three, one was listed as “Wisconsin Election Protection,” one was a member of the public and one was an employee of the company that makes the machines.
“Public testing is part of the statutory process of election preparation, but I think it really gives the public an opportunity to see how we do the work that we do and to see the machines and … familiarize themselves with those machines, and then also learn about our process,” Gutiérrez told reporters.
Municipalities must conduct the public test within 10 days before an election, a step meant to ensure that voting equipment programming is accurate, according to the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
To ensure the election equipment is tallying results correctly, election officials feed a set of pre-marked ballots into each machine and review the results that are generated. The testing only ends when the count is free of errors, with any problems found in the testing being fixed before the equipment can be used in the election, according to the state Elections Commission.
Public test of election equipment comes as intense scrutiny of Milwaukee’s election process expected on Nov. 5
The public test comes just over a week before the city’s election administration is expected to again be under intense scrutiny in the tight race for the White House between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump in 2020 leaned into false claims, including about voting in Milwaukee, to try to undermine the election in which he lost the White House to his Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
Trump lost Wisconsin by about 21,000 votes, an outcome confirmed by recounts he paid for, court rulings, a nonpartisan state audit and a study by a prominent conservative group.
Gutiérrez on Saturday urged those with concerns about the city’s election process to participate in the process by serving as a poll worker.
And, she said, people who are conducting the election as poll workers are a bipartisan group consisting of members of the community.
“The staff that work for us are amazing staff,” she said. “It’s thousands of people that live and work in this community. They are your neighbors. They are your friends.”
Among the observers Saturday was Doug Kwikkel of Hartland.
The GOP volunteer said he wanted to come Saturday to see how the process works. He said he was comforted to see paper ballots being used and how “exacting” election officials were in their processes.
Kwikkel said he saw it as his duty as an American to participate.
A first-time election observer, Kwikkel said he got involved now because “this election is way too important for us not to get out and vote and participate.”
He plans to observe at one of the city’s polling places on Election Day, too, he said.
Election machines ‘passed the rigorous logic and accuracy standards’ ahead of Election Day
On Saturday, the city’s public test included all 13 high-speed “tabulators” that will be used to tally results from tens of thousands of absentee ballots at Milwaukee’s central county location and a sampling of the machines that will be used at the city’s 180 individual polling locations.
All machines that will be used to count votes on Nov. 5 were previously tested and “passed the rigorous logic and accuracy standards,” according to a city Election Commission spokesperson.
Gutiérrez has estimated that the city could receive 80,000 absentee ballots. As of 10:40 a.m. Saturday, the city had issued 65,487 absentee ballots and 49,067 had been returned. In-person absentee voting started Tuesday.
On Saturday, election officials used 5,000 test ballots that showed every possible combination of votes that could be on a ballot, Gutiérrez said. That is meant to test every seat on the ballot to make sure the machine is counting it accurately.
Once the public testing is over, all of the results on the machines are cleared to zero and then the machines are sealed. They will not be reopened until Election Day, when officials will check again that the machines have not been unsealed, she said.
The ballot counting process then begins, with two specially trained people working together, she said.
“In elections, it’s always a big paper trail, checks and balances,” she said. “And even after the election is over, there are multiple audits at multiple levels of government.”
Milwaukee absentee ballot results will be tallied at the Baird Center on Election Day
The results of the city’s absentee ballots will be tallied at the Baird Center in downtown Milwaukee on Election Day.
Once all the absentee ballots are counted, a second lengthy process begins.
Election Commission staff must export the results from each of the 13 machines that count the absentee votes onto thumb drives, which are then secured in a bag and taken by a bipartisan team to the Milwaukee County Courthouse in a police vehicle, Gutiérrez said. There, they are uploaded to the county’s election-night website, a process that also takes time.
In Wisconsin, the election process is open to the public to observe.
Milwaukee is likely to be one of the last, if not the last, to report its absentee ballot results.
Gutiérrez expects those results to be reported after midnight on Nov. 6.
Alison Dirr can be reached at adirr@jrn.com.
Viral video shows alleged car theft confrontation on Milwaukee street
Car theft confrontation in Milwaukee sends stolen vehicle spinning as the suspect escapes on foot.
A 23-year-old Milwaukee man has been charged in a hit-and-run crash that killed a 44-year-old motorcyclist during the summer last year.
Jarvis L. Walker was charged March 7 with four counts: hit-and-run resulting in death, knowingly operating a vehicle without a valid license causing death, fleeing an officer and first-degree recklessly endangering safety.
The crash occurred June 7, 2025, at the intersection of North 76th Street and West Florist Avenue. Walker crashed into Wyman Kemble on his 2002 Harley-Davidson motorcycle and fled the scene, according to a criminal complaint.
Kemble suffered severe injuries in the crash and died at the scene.
Police said nearby security footage video shows Kemble was traveling northbound on 76th Street and had a green light when Walker, traveling southbound on 76th Street, crashed a rental car into Kemble while trying to make a left turn onto Florist Avenue.
Walker then exits the vehicle, grabs a backpack from the backseat and leaves the scene, the complaint said.
But a witness’ cellphone footage shows Walker return, yell something, and turn around and walk away before getting into another vehicle that just pulled over, according to the complaint.
The rental car came back to a person only identified in the complaint with the initials EW. The rental car customer told police that Walker had the vehicle during the time of the crash and Walker called him and told him that he had just been in a crash after a motorcycle ran a red light.
Ten months would pass before investigators zeroed in on Walker to arrest him.
On March 3, police had reason to believe that Walker was in the area of the 7200 block of West Marine Drive, the complaint said. Two undercover officers observed Walker get into an SUV, which exited a nearby parking lot and then immediately pulled over because the trunk was open, the complaint said.
Different officers in full uniform and an MPD squad moved in to try and arrest Walker, who was at the rear of the vehicle in the trunk, according to the complaint.
Walker then made his way back to his seat before one officer activated the squad lights and siren and exited the squad to say “Hey Jarvis, don’t do it” and “Jarvis get out of the car,” the complaint said.
But Walker fled the scene and led police on a nearly 10-mile pursuit in excess of 115 miles per hour, according to the complaint.
Police lost visual sight of Walker’s vehicle near North Teutonia Avenue and North Green Bay Avenue, but Glendale police observed the vehicle traveling southbound on West Green Bay Road and another short pursuit ensued before officers lost sight of Walker again, the complaint said.
Later that evening, Walker’s vehicle was observed unoccupied and running in the 4800 block of North 19th Place, according to the complaint. Police found Walker inside a nearby residence and arrested him.
Walker made his initial appearance in court on March 9, where bail was set at $25,000. If convicted on all counts, he faces decades behind bars.
Wyman Kemble remembered as mother’s rock
Leanne Kemble, Wyman Kemble’s mother, previously told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel at the time of the crash that Wyman was her oldest child and her “rock.”
She said her son loved the motorcycle he was riding at the time of his death. She described him as one of the most “kind, caring and fun-loving people you’d ever meet.”
Leanne Kemble said her son graduated from Riverside High School, where he played on the football team, and was a graduate of Milwaukee Area Technical College. Volleyball was now his sport of choice, and he played year-round, she said.
“He was always helping people with their car repairs, or just doing odd jobs to help out our neighbors,” she said. “He was an all-around great person. Everybody loved him.”
MILWAUKEE – MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius proposed cutting more than 263 non-classroom positions to help bridge a $46 million structural budget deficit.
A special meeting of the Milwaukee Board of School Directors is scheduled to take place on Monday night, March 9, to vote on this proposal.
Shifting resources
What we know:
The district said the reductions, which would take effect for the 2026–27 school year pending school board approval, would save about $30 million.
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“It is an extremely difficult day for us here in Milwaukee Public Schools, but in the end, I’m still hopeful. I’m hopeful for our students, I’m hopeful for all of the employees we have, and every single employee matters to us,” said Cassellius. “This is hard, and we’ll get through it.”
Officials said no classroom teacher positions are being cut to close the budget gap. That said, the district may need fewer teachers where there is lower enrollment. About 40 of the 263 positions being eliminated are already vacant, meaning that not all reductions will result in layoffs. Affected employees eligible for classroom-based roles will be encouraged to apply for available positions.
Cassellius stressed that MPS faces rising costs while receiving a $0 state increase in general aid for 2026-27 public school students. While the recent referendum has helped to support arts, physical education, mental health services, and career exploration, the superintendent indicated it does not make up for the lack of state-funded inflation increase
Proposed reductions
By the numbers:
The approximately 263 position reductions include the following, according to the school district:
- MPS Central Services: About 116 positions from the offices of Academics; Communications; Family, Community, and Partnership; Finance; Human Resources; Operations; Schools office; and the Superintendent’s office
- Non‑classroom school‑based roles: About 147 positions, including assistant principals, deans of students, and implementers.
The Source: Milwaukee Public Schools released information about its proposal.
Milwaukee, WI
Black joins Giannis, KPJ as out, How To Watch Orlando Magic-Milwaukee Bucks Lineups, Injuries, Betting Lines & More
The Orlando Magic put together one of its strongest efforts of the season in Minnesota on Saturday, squashing one of the West’s best 119-92. They’ll look to continue a road win streak that began in L.A. with wins over the Clippers and Lakers.
Milwaukee also won on Saturday, pulling away from the Utah Jazz 113-99 to snap a two-game skid that coincided with Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return from a 14-game absence due to a calf injury.
Antetokounmpo’s presence was necessary deep into the fourth quarter due to the game being tight, so that prevents him from participating in this one. Kevin Porter Jr. is also out.
The Magic are even with the Miami Heat atop the Southeast Division, although they hold a tie-braker since they have defeated Miami all four times they’ve played. The Magic’s upset of Minnesota has pushed them up to sixth place in the East.
Orlando is 14-15 on the road 20-19 against Eastern Conference foes. Milwaukee is 15-16 at home and 19-23 against Eastern Conference competition.
Vitals – How to Watch Magic at Bucks
Game date, time and location: Sunday, March 8, 8:10 p.m. EST, Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
TV: FanDuel Sports Network Florida (Magic), FanDuel Sports Wisconsin (Bucks)
Radio: FM 96.9 The Game/AM 740 WYGM (Magic), WTMJ (Bucks)
Magic look to extend road win streak to four by ending Bucks’ run
The Orlando Magic (34-28) visit the Milwaukee Bucks (27-35) in the third and final matchup between these teams this season.
The Magic last won a season series from Milwaukee in 2011-12, but have gone 14-35 since, which includes an upset loss (116-108) in the final game prior to the break. Cam Thomas, having just been signed after getting his release from the Brooklyn Nets, scored 34 points to complement a Kevin Porter Jr. triple-double (18 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists), so the Bucks are still in position to win this year’s series 2-1 if it can pull an upset on Sunday night.
The Bucks have opened up a 77-57 lead in the all-time series, which dates back to 1989-90. Milwaukee won the first nine matchups.
Betting Lines (via DraftKings)
Spread: Magic -6.5 (-112), Bucks +6.5 (-115)
Moneyline: Magic -218, Bucks +180
Total: 216.5 (Over -112, Under -108)
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
PROJECTED STARTERS
MAGIC
F Tristan da Silva
F Paolo Banchero
C Wendell Carter Jr.
G Jalen Suggs
G Desmond Bane
BUCKS
F Ousmane Dieng
F Pete Nance
C Myles Turner
G Ryan Rollins
G AJ Green
INJURY REPORT
MAGIC
Anthony Black: Out – Low Back Strain
Jonathan Isaac: Out – Left Knee Soreness
Franz Wagner: Out – Left High Ankle Sprain Injury Management
Jase Richardson: Out – Lower Back Spasms
Alex Morales: Out – G League (Two-way)
Colin Castleton: Out – G League (Two-way)
BUCKS
Giannis Antetokounmpo: Out – Right Calf Injury Management
Kevin Porter Jr.: Out – Right Knee Swelling
Kyle Kuzma: Out – Thoracic Spine Contusion
Taurean Prince: Out – Neck Surgery Recovery
Cormac Ryan: Out – G League (Two-way)
Alex Antetokounmpo: Out – G League (Two-way)
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