Linn County certifies Nov. 4 city-school election results; board sets post-election audit sampling

Deputy Commissioner of Elections Matt Warfield presented the canvas of votes for the Nov. 4 city-school election and recommended the board proceed with post-election documentation and a hand-count audit sample.

Warfield told supervisors that total ballots across all precincts were 35,668, equal to 22.77% of registered voters. He reported seven provisional ballots were received (three were accepted as cured and four were rejected), and several late absentee ballots (including UOCAVA and Safe at Home ballots) were handled according to Secretary of State rules; three Safe at Home ballots were accepted in accordance with statute.

Warfield reported the required post-election hand-count audit had been completed for selected precincts and no discrepancies were found in the audited hand counts. Supervisors discussed how many precincts to sample for further review; after discussion they agreed on a sampling approach (supervisors proposed a total of 10 precincts across districts, with a mix drawn from Cedar Rapids, Marion and other districts) and asked elections staff to begin audits and inform the board which precincts were selected.

A supervisor thanked elections staff and volunteers for successfully administering the election, and the board completed abstracts and certificates for signature after the meeting.

Next steps: supervisors will notify elections staff which precincts they want for additional review or allow elections staff to proceed with the planned random sampling; abstracts and certificates will be signed as part of canvass completion.