Milwaukee election officials detail added safeguards during Central Count tour ahead of Election Day

Milwaukee election officials are preparing to process and count tens of thousands of absentee ballots at Central Count.In an effort to promote transparency, the Milwaukee Election Commission invited journalists inside the Italian Community Center, where absentee ballots will be processed, to get a closer look at the operation ahead of Tuesday's election.Executive Director of the Milwaukee Election Commission Paulina Gutierrez led the tour, showing reporters the workstations, tabulating machines and secure ballot storage areas.This is an amazing thing to show democracy in action, Gutierrez said.Gutierrez said just over 64,000 absentee ballots had been issued, with approximately 58,000 already at Central Count. About 130 election workers will operate across 10 pods and 10 tabulating machines.Workers will first review ballots for eligibility before accepted ballots are prepared and processed through the machines.Once counting is complete, election officials download the results onto data