Milwaukee orders recount of 31,000 mail-in ballots, likely delaying results in Wisconsin

Election officials in Milwaukee said Tuesday they will proceed with a recount of more than 30,000 mail-in ballots because of tabulation problems, an error that is expected to delay the release of results from a closely contested state.

City of Milwaukee spokesman Jeff Fleming told reporters Tuesday that officials decided to order a recount of the 31,000 mail-in ballots after discovering problems with 13 tabulator machines.

Either the machines were missing their physical seals or were not properly secured by senior election officials, Fleming said. Everything is reset and counted again.

The decision to recount the mail-in ballots was made in consultation with Republican and Democratic officials, according to a district spokesman.

Republicans are preparing for crucial court battles that could decide the 2024 election

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, and former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein and Octavio Jones/File Photo)

Fleming told reporters Tuesday that the decision to recount ballots was made out of “an abundance of caution,” although he acknowledged that the recount would likely cause delays in the state's broader election results.

Milwaukee is the largest city in Wisconsin, one of seven battleground states considered crucial in determining the next president.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, arrives to speak during a campaign event at the Wisconsin State Fair Expo in West Allis, Wisconsin, November 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Wisconsin is also one of the most competitive states in the 2024 election cycle.

The Badger State is also one of three Rust Belt states that voted for Trump in 2016 before going for Joe Biden in 2020.

Biden narrowly won the state in 2020 by a margin of 20,682 votes. The narrow victory gives the state additional incentive to be as transparent and careful as possible when counting and reporting ballots, Fleming emphasized on Tuesday.

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“What needs to be renewed is exactly what is happening to the machines on the wall,” Fleming told reporters. “It will extend the time until we get the total numbers. We don't know how long this will last. So it’s not insignificant.”

Republicans on Tuesday evening rebuked Milwaukee for the error, calling it an “unacceptable example of incompetent election administration in a key swing state.”

A man wears a Trump wig and a Trump flag. Luzerne County, normally a Democratic county, flipped the election in 2016. Pennsylvania County is a hot spot for this election. Trump supporters led a parade through the county in support of the former president. (Aimee Dilger/SOPA Images/Sipa USA)

Voters “deserve better, and we unequivocally call on Milwaukee officials to do their jobs and count ballots quickly and effectively,” Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley and co-chair Lara Trump said in a statement .

“Anything else undermines voters’ trust.”

Get the latest updates on the 2024 election, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital Election Center.