Vote By Mail A County Perspective Dolores Gilmore, Elections Manager

Kitsap County 145,500 voters Data Information Management Software – DIMS Dominion (formerly Sequoia) ballot counting system

Mail Voting – Step by Step 1983 – District requested special elections 1983 – District requested special elections 1991 – Ongoing absentee voter requests 1991 – Ongoing absentee voter requests 2003 – Nonpartisan Primaries 2003 – Nonpartisan Primaries 2005 – All mail with County legislative approval 2005 – All mail with County legislative approval All counties in Washington State All counties in Washington State

Expectations Perfect Elections Perfect Elections Document and demonstrate accuracyDocument and demonstrate accuracy Hundreds of poll workers and temporary staff make no errorsHundreds of poll workers and temporary staff make no errors You can’t put a price on Elections You can’t put a price on Elections Voters want to stand in line at poll sites to place the ballot in a box Voters want to stand in line at poll sites to place the ballot in a box Voters won’t like the change Voters won’t like the change

Reality Elections are more complex Elections are more complex Electronic, provisional, audio, languages, etc. Electronic, provisional, audio, languages, etc. Trust and transparency is maintained Trust and transparency is maintained Shrinking budgets Shrinking budgets Vote centers and Ballot Drop sites Vote centers and Ballot Drop sites 50% of California voters have already made the change 50% of California voters have already made the change

Will CA Laws Change? When mail ballots reach 88% of the vote? When mail ballots reach 88% of the vote? When it is too costly to open poll sites & conduct a mail election simultaneously? When it is too costly to open poll sites & conduct a mail election simultaneously? When legislators say the time is right? When legislators say the time is right? When some states west of the Mississippi vote by mail? When some states west of the Mississippi vote by mail?

Start Now We looked at our election program We looked at our election program Are all poll sites easily accessible? Are all poll sites easily accessible? Sites with parking or size limitations? Sites with parking or size limitations? Low voter turnout Low voter turnout Close to another poll site? Close to another poll site? Should poll sites decrease by 50% if poll votes decreased by 50%? Should poll sites decrease by 50% if poll votes decreased by 50%? Consolidated several precincts to our best poll sites Consolidated several precincts to our best poll sites

Considerations Timing is everything Timing is everything Built in flexibility Built in flexibility Added workers for larger elections Added workers for larger elections Have a plan B Have a plan B Precinct consolidation logic Precinct consolidation logic Grouped by district Grouped by district What works for your county? What works for your county?

Vote Centers - Divide the Line

B box Consolidated precinct poll book Provisional A to L M to Z

Mail Ballot Processing Counting ballots by batch is more efficient Counting ballots by batch is more efficient From 189 precinct sorts to 11 From 189 precinct sorts to 11 A full batch has 200 ballots A full batch has 200 ballots Consolidated precincts by district to ensure easy access for recounts Consolidated precincts by district to ensure easy access for recounts

Mail Voting = More Options Political Party Observers Political Party Observers Our biggest fans Our biggest fans Have helped us improve the process Have helped us improve the process Voters now have more choices Voters now have more choices Mail Box Mail Box Ballot drop site Ballot drop site Vote Center Vote Center

The Benefits More efficient processes More efficient processes Less workers to hire and train Less workers to hire and train Fewer worker discrepancies Fewer worker discrepancies Cost savings Cost savings Flexible for small or large elections Flexible for small or large elections Election night at 8:30 p.m. Election night at 8:30 p.m.

What about all our Poll workers? We will always need good workers We will always need good workers Mail ballot processing Mail ballot processing Voting Centers Voting Centers Political Party Observers Political Party Observers Retirement Party Retirement Party

Online Registration From Data Entry to Data Verification

Online Registration Implementation, timing and testing Implementation, timing and testing Bi-weekly conference calls at the technical level Bi-weekly conference calls at the technical level State, county and vendor key contacts State, county and vendor key contacts We let go of the paper, but We let go of the paper, but Kept control of voter record accuracy Kept control of voter record accuracy From single record to report verification From single record to report verification

What Took us so Long? Huge benefit prior to elections Huge benefit prior to elections Gone are the boxes of applications Gone are the boxes of applications Currently 80% of our transactions are received online Currently 80% of our transactions are received online Record processing is 3 – 4 times faster Record processing is 3 – 4 times faster Drastically reduced temporary staffing Drastically reduced temporary staffing

Questions? Dolores Gilmore, Elections Manager