The clerk’s office of Green Bay has announced that the Green Bay Area Public School District (GBAPSD) will have to proctor its own elections and the clerk will not be providing election services, effective immediately. The next election for GBAPSD is in 2026. 

The city was running multiple election cycles with no city elections, but only school elections taking place, says District legal counsel Melissa Thiel Collar. The Green Bay City clerk, Celestine Jeffreys, was only running said election for the school district. (RELATED: Former Packer CEO Continues Sports Influence in Green Bay Area)

The operation of these elections included verifying signatures, paperwork and verification responsibilities, and campaign finance documents. The city will still operate things such as polling places, and the counting of the ballots. 

Since 1980, the city has been running the elections for the school in every cycle. The board unanimously voted to accept the changes with no discussion. While this policy is effective immediately, the next GBAPSD election is not until 2026. 

“When board member Andrew Becker asked whether the city was required or chose to hand off voting responsibilities to the district, Thiel Collar said there wasn’t a clear answer, but that there’s a gray area in the law on whether the city clerk could run school board elections, and the “cleanest answer” would be for the district to run its own elections,” said the Green Bay Gazette. 

There should not be a noticeable change to the future elections. Election night, ballot counting, and polling should be similar to the original process. (RELATED: Green Bay Opens Search for New Superintendent)

The school board clerk will now be responsible for validating declarations of candidacy, and campaign finance forms will now be filed with the state per a legislative change. The clerk will also canvass the elections, or confirm the election results, with two other electors (if the board clerk is a candidate, the two others will choose a replacement), according to the Gazette. 

The last election was the April 1st, 2025 general election for 3 open seats on the board.