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Public commenter alleges ballots were mailed to underage registered voters; county says process differs from her experience
Summary
A Littleton resident, Karen Tallentire, used the public comment period to allege that Arapahoe County mailed ballots to thousands of underage registered voters (15'16), cited Colorado statutes and urged the county to prove it did not mail or print those ballots. The board did not take action; the chair responded that her own children did not get a
During public comment at the Oct. 4 Arapahoe County Board of Commissioners meeting, Karen Tallentire of Littleton alleged that the county had mailed ballots to 5,061 registered voters who were too young to vote (15'16) and said the county's website indicates active registered voters receive ballots.
Tallentire cited Colorado statutory citations as she stated them (transcribed as "CRS 1 1 1 0 4 1.7" and "CRS 1 13 7 0 4.5" and later "CRS 18 6 7 0 1") to argue that sending ballots to ineligible minors would produce "fake ballots" and could expose minors or county staff to criminal liability. She said the count of underage registrants increased by about 96 since the prior week and expressed doubt the county could prove it did not print or mail ballots to those registrants. Tallentire also said she believed the county website statement that active registered voters receive ballots supported her claim, but she also acknowledged it was possible the website is incorrect.
During the public comment response period the chair noted her personal experience: her children did not receive ballots when they were 15'16, suggesting local processes may differ from Tallentire's description. The county did not take any immediate action on the allegation during the meeting; staff invited the public to follow up via the commissioners' email (commissioners@arapahoegov.com). No county official disputed Tallentire's specific numeric claim during the meeting, and no investigation or formal staff response was presented at the meeting.
Why it matters: The claim, if true, would raise election-administration and legal questions. The board did not adopt any motion or direct staff to take immediate action at the meeting; Tallentire's comments entered the record as public comment.
