The short version
In Wisconsin you get on the ballot mainly through nomination papers — collect voter signatures and file the papers with the right filing officer. The number of signatures depends on the office, and there's generally no filing fee.
- Offices you can run for
- Federal (U.S. House and Senate); statewide offices (Governor and other state officials); the State Senate and Assembly; county, municipal, and school-district offices; and (nonpartisan) judicial seats.
- How to get on the ballot
- Obtain nomination papers and collect the required signatures for your office. Federal, statewide, and multi-jurisdictional judicial candidates file with the Wisconsin Elections Commission; local candidates file with their county, municipal, or school-district clerk. Use the Commission's Ballot Access checklist for your office to confirm the exact signature count and deadline.
- Who runs candidate filing
- Wisconsin Elections Commission
This is a plain-language overview, not legal advice. Filing deadlines and fees change every election cycle and vary by office; the official Wisconsin resources below are the final word. When in doubt, the elections authority is right and we're wrong.
Find your Wisconsin county
Every county runs its own filing office and its own local races. See all 72 Wisconsin counties, each with its election office, fees, deadlines and local facts.
The 2027 ballot in Wisconsin.
These 2027 dates are confirmed against the state's own published calendar or statute. Anything our research could not confirm is left off this page rather than estimated.
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February 16, 2027
Primary — Local and judicial.
Spring primary, held only where more than twice as many candidates file as there are seats: Wisconsin Supreme Court and other judicial seats, school boards, and city, village and town offices.
Candidate filing: opens Dec 1, 2026, closes Jan 5, 2027.
Source 1 · Source 2 -
April 6, 2027
Nonpartisan — Municipal and school.
Spring election: mayors and alderpersons, village presidents and trustees, town board chairs and supervisors, municipal judges, and school board members whose terms expire.
Candidate filing: opens Dec 1, 2026, closes Jan 5, 2027.
Source 1 · Source 2
2027 dates can move, and a municipality can change its own election date by ordinance. Which seats are on a given ballot depends on when each was last filled. Confirm anything you are relying on with the county election office before you act on it.
Official Wisconsin candidate resources
Start here for the exact deadlines, fees, forms, and signature counts for your office and cycle. Note: 2026 filing has closed in most states, so these resources govern the standing rules; check the official calendar for your next filing window.
Once you're on the ballot, Motion51 runs your field game.
Get your district's voter file loaded, cut into walkable turf, and onto an app your volunteers use at the door. Wisconsin is fully available; see how to get your voter file.
Talk to us about your Wisconsin race
Tell us what you're running for and we'll help you go from "qualified" to "knocking doors": voter file loaded, turf cut, volunteers set up.