Oshkosh council candidates back expanding polling locations but call for data and staffing review

At the forum, most Oshkosh common council candidates said they support increasing the number of polling locations after the city consolidated sites and reassigned wards, which some speakers connected to lower turnout in affected areas.

Incumbent Jacob Amis said he “1000 percent” supports increasing locations and urged that residents be included in decisions about closures. "If we are going to close a location, I think that we should include the residents on those decisions," he said.

Paul Eslinger said he would consult the city clerk before committing to more sites because of staffing constraints but expressed support if analysis showed it would help. "If you wanna have more locations, that's great. But then you better ask the city clerk if we have enough people on hand to staff that," he said.

Logan Youngbacher and Alec Lefebvre both supported adding locations to improve access; Youngbacher emphasized fairness across neighborhoods after personally experiencing a long wait in a past election. Meredith Shireman said early voting improvements were positive but that choices to close sites previously had reasoned safety and access considerations and called for data-driven review.

Candidates suggested complementary steps like better outreach, free transit on election day and clearer communication with voters. No formal council action was taken at the forum; candidates said they would look to staff analysis and resident input before approving changes.