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Ada County elections office reports early voting turnout, plans new envelope opener and public logic test
Summary
Elections staff told commissioners early voting began smoothly with 263 in-person votes the first day, 4,122 absentee ballots issued so far, absentee request and return deadlines, a May 15 public logic and accuracy test, and a grant-funded envelope opener added to absentee processing.
Ada County elections staff updated commissioners on May 6 that in-person early voting began without reported problems and that absentee ballot processing will soon include a new envelope opener funded largely by state grants.
The elections office reported 263 voters cast ballots in-person countywide on the first early-voting day, and that 4,122 absentee ballots have been issued so far. Staff reminded voters that May 9 is the last day to request an absentee ballot and that absentee ballots must be in the county—s possession by 8 p.m. on May 20 (election day). The office also scheduled a public logic-and-accuracy test of voting equipment for May 15 at the elections headquarters; the test is open for public observation.
Elections staff described adding an automated envelope opening machine to the absentee processing line to reduce manual labor and paper cuts. The office said the machine will be funded mostly by state grants (about 90%) and require only a small local contribution. The machine slices a narrow millimeter from the top of an envelope, allowing staff to retrieve ballots for imaging and processing; it does not extract ballots automatically.
Because the elections building is under construction, the elections office deployed a mobile voting unit outside the headquarters as the early-voting site there. Staff said the mobile unit will be retained as an emergency or temporary polling solution in future situations where facilities are inaccessible.
The elections representative noted the county—s website (countyelections.gov) for voters to check their ballots for jurisdiction-specific contests and urged voters to confirm their ballots before arrival. The update concluded with staff inviting the public to observe processing and testing through upgraded warehouse cameras when construction is complete.
