Panel members raise concerns about processes and a lack of transparency after the discovery that 193 properly returned absentee ballots weren’t tallied.

The bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission voted unanimously Thursday to launch an immediate investigation into how the city of Madison left nearly 200 absentee ballots uncounted during the November election, the first time the commission has used its investigative authority.

The bipartisan state elections commission was created by former Gov. Scott Walker and Republican lawmakers to replace the Government Accountability Board. While the commission retained some statutory investigative authority, the probe into Madison's uncounted ballots marks the agency's first formal investigation.