Wisconsin health department: 36 people positive for coronavirus after primary vote

At least three dozen Wisconsin voters and poll workers have tested positive for Covid-19, the disease caused by the unique coronavirus, the state health department told POLITICO on Monday.

Shortly after the state held an in-person election on April 7, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services announced “new tracing mechanisms” to help local health departments track residents who might have been exposed to the virus while working the polls or casting a ballot.

“So far, 36 people who tested Covid-19 positive after April 9 have reported that they voted in person or worked the polls on election day,” said Jennifer Miller, a spokeswoman for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services.

Miller said “several” people within that group reported additional possible exposures, making it unclear whether the election itself is responsible for their contraction of the disease. If those people contracted the virus prior to the election, they could have also spread it to others who went to the polls that day.

For that and other reasons, the figure is likely to grow in coming weeks. Forty people in Milwaukee County who participated in the election have tested positive, according to WUWM. Milwaukee Health Commissioner Jeanette Kowalik on Friday said data was still being analyzed but could be finalized by May 1.

State and local health officials said they expected to see cases begin emanating from the election by the following week, but the Department of Health Services said it wouldn’t “have a full picture of the impact for several weeks,” noting the lengthy contact tracing process to track exposure of the virus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people with Covid-19 may experience symptoms between two and 14 days after exposure. For state and local officials to track it, people with symptoms must get tested, wait for results and be interviewed.

Roughly 400,000 people in Wisconsin voted in person after the state Supreme Court overturned Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ last-minute order to postpone in-person voting. The Wisconsin Elections Commission provided personal protective equipment and guidance to municipal and county clerks, but working the polls or waiting in line and voting still presented a risk.