Lake County registrar seeks staffing, equipment and space to speed post‑election processing

Maria Valadez, Lake County registrar of voters, asked the Board of Supervisors on an agenda item to authorize work toward a targeted investment in staffing, infrastructure and technology intended to speed post‑election processing and meet state certification deadlines.

Valadez told the board the county’s election workload has grown sharply since 2020, driven by new laws and rising voter interest, and that current staffing, floor space and equipment have not kept pace. “This isn’t about inefficiency. It's about capacity,” she said, describing the request as a way to “accelerate results” while remaining compliant with certification and accessibility requirements.

Why it matters: Lake County must complete statutory certification steps after each election and now provides weekly public results in some election cycles, which has increased post‑election processing demands. Valadez said the county’s vote‑by‑mail program accounted for the majority of returns in the last election and that on the day after the election her office processed only a few hundred ballots before the workday ended.

Key details and numbers - Mail ballots: Valadez said mail ballots were the largest share of returned ballots (56%), representing 13,331 ballots in the last election. - Drop boxes and polls: The county has six ballot drop boxes; roughly 3,500 ballots were returned via drop boxes in the last election. Between the mail drop period and election day the office logged about 3,000 additional returns; on election day roughly 1,700–1,800 ballots came through the polls. - Calls and staffing pressure: On election day the office handled more than 4,700 phone calls; Valadez said…