Voter urges supervisors to correct claims in county resolution on ballot returns, proposes expanded drop-box access

During the public-comment period at the Cochise County Board of Supervisors’ April 1 meeting, Allison Morse, identifying herself as an active voter from Portal, said the board’s recently adopted Resolution 25-02 misstated facts about early ballot returns and election timelines and urged the county to expand ballot-drop options.

Morse said the county’s resolution asserted that early-ballot drop-offs “cut in front of the line” on election day; she said that is inaccurate because, she quoted, “people who are dropping off early ballots need not wait in line.” She told supervisors that early-ballot return figures cited in the resolution were overstated: the resolution stated that 20% of mail ballots were returned on election day, but Morse said the actual figure for the 2024 general election in Cochise County was less than 6% and was less than 8% statewide.

Morse also challenged the board’s statements about how long voters have to return mail ballots, saying ballots are mailed less than four weeks before election day and that, in practice, voters typically have closer to three weeks to return them. She noted the county faced operational issues during the 2024 election — a two-page ballot, a bomb threat, power outages and machine malfunctions — but said Cochise County finalized results four days before the statutory deadline despite those challenges.

To improve access, Morse urged the board to add more drop boxes at existing ballot locations, extend hours of operation and make drop boxes available on weekends so working people and families could return early ballots without being forced to choose between work and voting.

No formal action was taken in response to Morse’s remarks; a board member invited her to follow up by email for staff clarification.