Milwaukee Primary Results Delayed Due to Human Error

Milwaukee's election results from the primary held on August 12, 2026, were delayed due to a "human error" involving five of nine USB flash drives that failed to download the election results. This incident affected the Democratic gubernatorial primary between Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and Francesca Hong. Paulina Gutiérrez, executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission, stated that the error delayed the reporting of results by one hour, but assured that the election results remained intact and unchanged. Gutiérrez explained that a wrong button was pushed during the data download process, which led to the audit log being downloaded instead of the election results. The error left approximately 15,000 votes uncounted at that time. After the data was properly downloaded after 1 a.m., Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson emphasized the importance of transparency in the election process. Critics, including Republican state Rep. Scott Krug, expressed concerns about the handling of the situation, calling it a sign of incompetence. This incident follows other recent election administration issues in Democratic-led states, including New Jersey and Oregon. The final results of the primary were announced at 2:34 a.m., with Crowley winning by a margin of 0.5%.