Wis. Stat. § 8.10 — WI Code / Chapter 8 / Section 8.10
Nominations for spring election.
Status: in_force

(1) Candidates for office to be filled at the spring election shall be nominated by nomination papers, or by nomination papers and selection at the primary if a primary is held, except as provided for towns and villages under s. 8.05 . Unless designated in this section or s. 8.05 , the general provisions pertaining to nomination at the partisan primary apply.

(2)

(a) Nomination papers for offices to be filled at the spring election may be circulated no sooner than December 1 preceding the election and may be filed no later than 5 p.m. on the first Tuesday in January preceding the election, or the next day if Tuesday is a holiday, except as authorized in this paragraph. If an incumbent fails to file nomination papers and a declaration of candidacy by the time prescribed in this paragraph, all candidates for the office held by the incumbent, other than the incumbent, may file nomination papers no later than 72 hours after the latest time prescribed in this paragraph. No extension of the time for filing nomination papers applies if the incumbent files written notification with the filing officer or agency with whom nomination papers are filed for the office which the incumbent holds, no later than 5 p.m. on the 2nd Friday preceding the latest time prescribed in this paragraph for filing nomination papers, that the incumbent is not a candidate for reelection to his or her office, and the incumbent does not file nomination papers for that office within the time prescribed in this paragraph.

(am) If, under par. (a) , an incumbent holding local office files written notification that the incumbent is not a candidate for reelection to his or her office or fails to file a declaration of candidacy within the time prescribed in par. (a) , the officer or body with whom the declaration of candidacy is required to be filed shall promptly provide public notice of that fact on the officer’s or body’s Internet site or, if the officer or body does not maintain an Internet site, by posting notices in at least 3 different locations within the jurisdiction that the officer or body serves.

(b) Each nomination paper shall have substantially the following words printed at the top:

(c) Each candidate shall include his or her mailing address on the candidate’s nomination papers.

(3) The certification of a qualified circulator under s. 8.15 (4) (a) who is a qualified elector of this state shall be appended to each nomination paper. The number of required signatures on nomination papers filed under this section is as follows:

(a) For statewide offices, not less than 2,000 nor more than 4,000 electors.

(am) For court of appeals judges, not less than 1,000 nor more than 2,000 electors.

(b) For judicial offices not specified in pars. (a) , (am) , and (c) , not less than 200 nor more than 400 electors.

(c) For judicial offices in counties over 750,000 population, not less than 1,000 nor more than 2,000 electors.

(cm) For county executives in counties over 750,000 population, not less than 2,000 nor more than 4,000 electors.

(cs) For comptrollers in counties with a population of at least 750,000, not less than 500 nor more than 1,000 electors.

(d) For county executives in counties between 100,000 and 750,000 population, not less than 500 nor more than 1,000 electors.

(e) For county executives in counties under 100,000 population, not less than 200 nor more than 400 electors.

(f) For supervisors in counties over 750,000 population, not less than 200 nor more than 400 electors.

(g) For supervisors in counties between 100,000 and 750,000 population, not less than 100 nor more than 200 electors, except as provided in sub. (3m) .

(h) For supervisors in counties under 100,000 population, not less than 20 nor more than 100 electors.

(hm) For members of the metropolitan sewerage commission in districts over 1,000,000 population, not less than 1,000 nor more than 2,000 electors, in districts over 200,000 but not over 1,000,000 population, not less than 200 nor more than 400 electors, and in districts not over 200,000 population, not less than 100 nor more than 200 electors.

(i) For city offices in 1st class cities, not less than 1,500 nor more than 3,000 electors for city-wide offices, not less than 200 nor more than 400 electors for alderpersons elected from aldermanic districts and not less than 400 nor more than 800 electors for members of the board of school directors elected from election districts.

(j) Except as provided in par. (jm) , for city offices in 2nd and 3rd class cities, not less than 200 nor more than 400 electors for city-wide offices and not less than 20 nor more than 40 electors for alderpersons elected from aldermanic districts.

(jm) For city offices in 2nd and 3rd class cities, not less than 100 nor more than 200 electors for alderpersons who are not elected from aldermanic districts.

(k) For city offices in 4th class cities, not less than 50 nor more than 100 for city-wide offices and not less than 20 nor more than 40 electors for alderpersons elected from aldermanic districts.

(km)

1. Except as provided in subd. 2. and subject to sub. (3s) , for school district officer in any school district that contains territory lying within a 2nd class city, not less than 100 nor more than 200 electors.

2. For a school district officer in any school district described in subd. 1. , not less than 20 and not more than 100 signatures if the annual meeting or the school board of the school district adopts a resolution to reduce the number of required signatures and if, on the date that the annual meeting or school board acts under this subdivision, the territory of the school district lying within one or more 2nd class cities is less than or equal to 10 percent of the territory of the school district.

(ks) For school district officer in any school district which does not contain territory lying within a 1st or 2nd class city, if nomination papers are required under s. 120.06 (6) (a) , not less than 20 nor more than 100 electors.

(L) For other offices, not less than 20 nor more than 100 electors.

(3m) The county board of any county having a population of at least 100,000 but not more than 750,000 may provide by ordinance that the number of required signatures on nomination papers for the office of county supervisor in the county is not less than 50 nor more than 200 electors. A county that enacts such an ordinance may repeal the ordinance at a later date. Any ordinance changing the number of signatures under this subsection takes effect on November 15 following enactment of the ordinance.

(3s)

(a) For a school district that does not contain any territory lying within a 2nd class city on April 18, 2018, the signature requirement for school district officer under sub. (3) (km) 1. first applies to a candidate for the office of school district officer filled in the 2nd spring election that follows the effective date of the event that causes the school district to have territory that lies within a 2nd class city.

(b) For a school district that has, by resolution, reduced the number of signatures required on nomination papers as permitted under sub. (3) (km) 2. , the signature requirement for school district officer under sub. (3) (km) 1. first applies to a candidate for the office of school district officer filed in the 2nd spring election that follows the date of the event that causes the territory of the school district lying within one or more 2nd class cities to be greater than 10 percent of the territory of the school district.

(4)

(a) All signers on each nomination paper shall reside in the jurisdiction or district which the candidate named on the paper will represent, if elected.

(b) Only one signature per person for the same office is valid. In addition to his or her signature, in order for the signature to be valid, each signer of a nomination paper shall legibly print his or her name in a space provided next to his or her signature and shall list his or her municipality of residence for voting purposes, the street and number, if any, on which the signer resides, and the date of signing.

(5) Nomination papers shall be accompanied by a declaration of candidacy under s. 8.21 . If a candidate has not filed a registration statement under s. 11.0202 (1) (a) at the time he or she files nomination papers, the candidate shall file the statement with the papers. A candidate for state office or municipal judge shall also file a statement of economic interests with the ethics commission under s. 19.43 (4) no later than 4:30 p.m. on the 3rd day following the last day for filing nomination papers under sub. (2) (a) , or no later than 4:30 p.m. on the next business day after the last day whenever that candidate is granted an extension of time for filing nomination papers under sub. (2) (a) .

(6) Nomination papers shall be filed:

(a) For state offices or seats on a metropolitan sewerage commission, if the commissioners are elected under s. 200.09 (11) (am) , in the office of the elections commission.

(b) For county offices, in the office of the county clerk or board of election commissioners.

(bm) For municipal judge, if the judge is elected under s. 755.01 (4) , in the office of the county clerk or board of election commissioners of the county having the largest portion of the population in the jurisdiction served by the judge.

(c) For city offices and other offices voted for exclusively within the municipality, except the office of county supervisor, in the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners.

(d) For school district offices to be voted for within more than one municipality, with the person designated by the school board as the filing official for their school district.

(7) If a candidate submits nomination papers with more than the maximum number of required signatures prescribed under sub. (3) , but the filing official determines that the maximum number of required signatures does not result in a sufficient number of valid signatures, the filing official shall review the additional signatures to the extent necessary to determine whether the candidate has collected a sufficient number of valid signatures.

(8)

(a) Notwithstanding sub. (2) (b) and (c) and s. 8.21 (4) (b) , a candidate for filling the office of a judicial officer, as defined in s. 757.07 (1) (e) , who files a certification of residence with the commission before circulating nomination papers is not required to indicate his or her residential address on the nomination papers, including nomination papers circulated on behalf of the judicial officer, or on the declaration of candidacy. Notwithstanding sub. (3) (intro.) , a judicial officer, as defined in s. 757.07 (1) (e) , who intends to circulate nomination papers on behalf of a candidate for filling a nonpartisan office, or who intends to sign nomination papers to support such a candidate, is not required to indicate his or her residential address on the certification of a qualified circulator appended to the nomination papers or on the nomination papers as a signatory. The commission shall promulgate rules for the administration of this subsection and prescribe a certification of residence for a candidate or circulating judicial officer for use under this subsection.

(b) Certifications of residence submitted to the commission under par. (a) shall be kept confidential unless the judicial officer consents to disclosure under s. 757.07 (4) (e) , except that the commission shall provide such certifications to the appropriate filing officer for the office the candidate or judicial officer seeks. Filing officers shall also keep confidential the certifications received by the commission unless the judicial officer consents to disclosure.

History: 1971 c. 304 s. 29 (1) , (2); 1973 c. 280 ; 1973 c. 334 s. 57 ; 1975 c. 93 , 328 , 422 ; 1977 c. 187 , 340 , 427 , 445 , 449 ; 1979 c. 221 , 249 , 260 , 355 ; 1983 a. 484 ; 1985 a. 89 , 304 ; 1989 a. 88 , 290 ; 1993 a. 140 , 184 , 266 ; 1995 a. 16 s. 2 ; 1999 a. 150 s. 672 ; 1999 a. 182 ; 2001 a. 103 ; 2005 a. 451 ; 2007 a. 1 ; 2011 a. 62 , 75 ; 2013 a. 160 , 174 ; 2015 a. 117 , 118 ; 2017 a. 207 s. 5 ; 2017 a. 321 , 366 ; 2021 a. 33 ; 2023 a. 125 , 235 ; 2025 a. 126 , 130 .