Wisconsin's spring 2027 local election is on Tuesday, April 6, 2027, with a spring primary on Tuesday, February 16, 2027 in races where one is triggered. For candidates, the most important dates are December 1, 2026, when nomination papers may begin circulating, and 5 p.m. on Tuesday, January 5, 2027, when nomination papers, the Declaration of Candidacy and the campaign registration statement are all due to your filing officer. Challenges to nomination papers are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, January 8, 2027.
This page lists every date in the cycle in order, from the November decisions that shape a race to the day school board members take office. Dates confirmed in WEC's 2027 ballot access checklists or stated directly in the statutes are marked "confirmed." Dates we calculated from a statutory formula, because WEC has not yet published its full 2027 calendar of events, are marked "based on state law." Confirm any calculated date with your municipal clerk, county clerk or school district clerk before you rely on it.
For the full process of getting on the ballot, start with our guide to running for local office in Wisconsin.
Before circulation begins: November 2026
The last Tuesday in November 2026. In a school district with no territory in a 1st or 2nd class city, nomination papers are required only if the school board (or the annual meeting, in a common or union high school district) adopted a resolution requiring them by this date. Otherwise, candidates in those districts file only a Declaration of Candidacy and a campaign registration statement. Ask your school district clerk which applies.
Sunday, November 15, 2026, if you plan to text. Campaign Verify, the check that political campaigns need before texting, sets its cycle by request date. Requests made before November 15, 2026 expire January 31, 2027, in the middle of your campaign. Requests made on or after November 15 last until January 31, 2029. If you plan to text, see the setup section below.
December 2026
Tuesday, December 1, 2026 (confirmed). Nomination papers may begin circulating. Signatures dated before December 1 are not counted. This is also the deadline for two village decisions: a village board must decide by December 1 to use nomination papers rather than a caucus, and a petition of 10 percent of voters asking for a village primary must be filed by this date.
Between December 1, 2026 and January 1, 2027. In towns and villages that nominate by caucus, the governing body sets the caucus date during this window.
Friday, December 25, 2026, 5 p.m. (confirmed). Incumbents who are not running again file a Notification of Noncandidacy (form EL-163) with the same filing officer who receives nomination papers. The statute sets this deadline as the second Friday before the filing deadline. Ask your filing officer how to deliver the notice.
January 2027
January 2 to January 21, 2027 (confirmed). Caucuses are held in towns and villages that nominate by caucus. State law says preference should be given to January 21. The two top vote-getters for each office are nominated (twice the number of seats for unnumbered town supervisor seats and village trustees). Caucus nominees then file their Declaration of Candidacy and campaign registration statement by 5 p.m. on the fifth day after they are notified.
Tuesday, January 5, 2027, 5 p.m. (confirmed). Filing deadline. Your filing officer must have:
- your nomination papers (form EL-169), if your office uses them, as originals in hand;
- your Declaration of Candidacy (form EL-162, or EL-162sd for school board), sworn before an officer authorized to administer oaths; and
- your campaign registration statement (form CF-1), unless you filed it earlier.
A faxed or emailed CF-1 or EL-162 must be followed by the original, postmarked by January 5.
Within 3 days after the filing deadline. A city council may vote to hold a spring primary, a village board may provide for one, and a 10 percent petition for a city primary may be filed. Your clerk will know shortly after this window whether your race has a primary.
Friday, January 8, 2027, 5 p.m. (based on state law). Challenges to nomination papers are due to the filing officer, three calendar days after the filing deadline. The same date and time apply in two other cases:
- Extended filing. If an incumbent neither filed for reelection nor gave notice of noncandidacy, other candidates for that office have 72 more hours to file, to 5 p.m. on January 8.
- Municipal judges. Candidates file a Statement of Economic Interests with the Ethics Commission by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, January 8 (confirmed).
After a challenge is filed. The candidate's response is due by 5 p.m. on the third calendar day after the challenge is filed, and the challenger may reply within 24 hours. Correcting affidavits are due by 5 p.m. on the third calendar day after the challenge deadline.
Tuesday, January 12, 2027 (based on state law). The school district clerk certifies school board candidates by 5 p.m., and, where there is no school board primary, the drawing of lots for ballot order takes place by this date.
Friday, January 15, 2027. Campaign committees that are not exempt from reporting file their January continuing report.
Tuesday, January 26, 2027 (based on state law). The last day, 70 days before the election, to file a local referendum question for the April 6 ballot with the official who prepares the ballot. School boards planning a revenue limit or borrowing referendum for April 6 need their resolution in place by this date.
February 2027: the spring primary
Only some races have a primary. City and village primaries require a council or board vote, a charter ordinance or a petition, and are held only when candidates exceed twice the seats. County supervisor races have a primary whenever 3 or more candidates file. School board primaries depend on the type of seat. Our guide to running for local office in Wisconsin explains each rule.
February 2 to February 14, 2027 (based on state law). In-person absentee voting for the primary may be offered in this window. Each municipality sets its own hours, and many offer fewer days.
Thursday, February 11, 2027, 5 p.m. (based on state law). By-mail absentee ballot requests for the primary must be received.
Friday, February 12, 2027, noon (based on state law). Write-in candidates in a race with a certified candidate must file a campaign registration statement for their write-in votes to count in the primary.
Tuesday, February 16, 2027 (confirmed). Spring primary. Only primary winners appear on the April ballot.
Before the primary. Non-exempt committees of candidates in a primary file a preprimary report covering the period that ends 14 to 8 days before the primary. Ask your filing officer for the exact dates.
March and April 2027: the spring election
Tuesday, March 23 through Sunday, April 4, 2027 (based on state law). In-person absentee voting may be offered, no earlier than 14 days before the election and no later than the Sunday before. Each municipality sets its own hours. Voters need a photo ID.
Before the election. Non-exempt committees file a preelection report covering the period that ends 14 to 8 days before the election.
Thursday, April 1, 2027, 5 p.m. (based on state law). By-mail absentee ballot requests must be received.
Friday, April 2, 2027 (based on state law). Indefinitely confined voters may request absentee ballots until 5 p.m. Write-in candidates in a race with a certified candidate must file a campaign registration statement by noon for their write-in votes to count.
Tuesday, April 6, 2027 (confirmed). Spring election.
Monday, April 26, 2027 (based on state law). School board members take office on the fourth Monday in April, after filing their official oath.
Thursday, July 15, 2027. Non-exempt committees file their July continuing report.
Step in the calendar: set up texting before absentee voting opens
Absentee voting opens in late March, and by then you will be busy at the doors. Set up your texting in December or early January instead:
- File your campaign registration first, then check that it is online. Campaign Verify ($95 per two-year cycle) needs an EIN (the committee's federal tax ID number) and a filing published online by an election authority. Wisconsin local candidates file on paper with the local filing officer, so confirm your registration can be viewed online before you request verification, and ask Campaign Verify Support if it cannot. Campaign Verify decides eligibility.
- Open your CampaignCNX+ account. CampaignCNX+ files your carrier registration with the carriers (the mobile phone companies) and guides you through Campaign Verify. The account includes 100 free SMS. Your number is $5 a month, and nothing sends until you buy it.
- Schedule your reminders. Write texts for the first day of in-person absentee voting, the mail request deadline and Election Day, and schedule them to your opted-in supporter group. Texts send only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m.
Our campaign plan to April 6, 2027 turns these dates into a week-by-week schedule, and campaign registration for Wisconsin local candidates explains the CF-1 and the reporting dates. For the texting rules in general, see our political texting guide.
Put the dates on your calendar now
The weeks between December 1 and January 5 go quickly, especially with the holidays in the middle. Mark the filing deadline, the challenge deadline and the first day of absentee voting, and have your texting ready before you need it. Open your CampaignCNX+ account once your registration is filed.