How to Use Voter Data 

A strategic communications plan is critical to building community trust before, during and after a referendum. In the end, referendums are also a numbers game.

Making sure that residents vote and that your story reaches those who do vote is essential. One item you may want to add to your toolbox is voter data.

Before sharing tips on how to access and use that data, a reminder: districts can encourage residents to vote, but not advocate how to vote. Legally, districts can only provide factual information, explaining and answering questions about challenges, needs, proposed solutions, taxes and impacts.

Every vote counts. Across Wisconsin over the past two years, 34 operating and capital referendums won or lost by a margin of less than 1%. Five referendums won or lost by 8 or fewer actual votes. In the Riverdale School district, if just five voters had changed from a no vote to a yes vote, the district's operational referendum would have passed in 2024. Luckily for Riverdale, they tried again in April and it passed - by 13 votes with 50.37% of the vote. The Hudson School District's April operational referendum passed with 50.02%.

Passage with 52.92% yes votes was the average margin of 336 school referendum questions in 2024 and 2025.

Voter participation also can be impacted by which election day you schedule your referendum. Turnout in spring elections is typically lower than fall gubernatorial or presidential elections. But many districts choose spring ballots so they can have better information to build their annual budget before required adoption in fall.

Boosting voter participation

So how can you increase voters' awareness of your referendum and participation at the ballot box? The Wisconsin Election Commission's Badger Voters website provides data downloads for minimal fees that show the number of:

• Registered voters in your school district, filterable by address, county, municipality and electoral ward.
• Total absentee (early voters) and election-day voters in past elections.
• "Permanent absentee" voters who receive mailed absentee ballots before all elections.
• Frequent voters.
• Elections in which each voter cast a ballot since 2006. You can't see how anyone voted, only if they voted and whether it was absentee or at the polls.
• Absentee ballots returned and counted before election day.

What does it cost? Voter lists cost $25 plus $5 for every thousand records returned by the request (rounded up to a thousand if less than one thousand, or to the nearest thousand if more, capped at $12,500). For example: a district with a list of 1,995 registered voters would pay $35.

How to use data

You may feel like you are snooping with this data but the Wisconsin Elections Commission confirms that this is all public record. Here are some ideas for appropriate and helpful use of data to improve your communication:

Did you have a large number of absentee voters in past elections?

• If so, increase your reminders about the deadlines to apply for and return a mailed absentee ballot and vote in-person absentee at your municipal clerk's office. "Vote early by mail or in person! Make sure your vote counts in case something gets in the way on election day (travel, weather, illness, time or you just forget)"
• Contact each municipal clerk inside your district. Ask when they will start mailing absentee ballots and what their in-person absentee voting days and hours will be. Communicate that information widely.
• The earliest that municipalities can start in-person early voting is 14 days before election day and the latest is the Sunday before election day. For the April 7, 2026 election that window will be March 24 to April 5. For the November 3, 2026 election it will be October 20 to November 1.
• Make sure to communicate your story fully and send mailers before early voting starts.
• Conversely, if the vast majority of your residents vote on election day, boost your communication about how voters can find their polling site on myvotewi.gov, the hours the polls are open and what identification they need to bring.
• There also are eligible voters in your district who cannot vote because they are not registered. Provide information about how to register, including instructions to high school seniors who can vote for the first time when they turn 18. Point new voters to district communications explaining the referendum.
• Potential places to communicate registration, absentee or election day voting information include your website, social media, direct mailers, district/school newsletters, other organizations' communications including county Leagues of Women Voters, district referendum information sessions, community coffees, superintendent newspaper columns and radio conversations, and presentations to groups such as civic, church, government, PTO and booster clubs.

Which municipalities or wards have low or high turnout? Where are your frequent voters?

• Identify geographic areas and frequent voters on your registered voters list with whom you might provide extra reminders to vote, as well as key information about your district's challenges, successes, needs, and recommended solutions.
• Voter lists include addresses for direct mail or door hangars.
• Choose a coffee shop, library or senior center in key areas and promote times you will be there to answer questions. Attend local government meetings there and ask to speak during the public comment section.

Plan ahead: does your history show the best time to schedule your referendum?

• Review your district's referendum history on this DPI website. Which referendums passed or failed, by what margins and how many total votes were cast?
• Are there any trends on outcomes in spring vs. fall elections? Any patterns of support for non-recurring operational referendums vs. recurring, or capital vs. operational? How about based on the amount of funding sought? Multi-year operating referendum with fixed annual amounts or stepped increases?
• Badger Voters data can help illustrate your past voter participation in spring/fall/other elections and your potential for increasing it. Has turnout been increasing or decreasing? How many votes will you need?
• During your referendum campaign, consider whether to use Badger Voters data to monitor early voting and how it compares to past elections.

How NOT to use data

Student privacy information laws (FERPA) prohibit the illegal use and sharing of private student education records and personally identifiable information (PII).

• Do NOT compare or match voter data with guardian or student information in your student information system database
• Do NOT compare or match voter data with personal district employee information such as home addresses
• Do NOT publish the voter list

When in doubt, districts should check with their legal counsel to verify they are following all state laws.

Community groups who advocate independently from the district for a "yes" or "no" vote also can obtain voter lists for their own communication, advanced tracking and outreach efforts.

Using data to maximize voter awareness and participation is one tactic in what should be a comprehensive, strategic referendum communication plan that works to maintain community trust, regardless of the election outcome.

This blog is intended for general informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. School districts should consult their legal counsel with questions about compliance with state law.