Election official outlines 12-step ballot processing at Wacom County Auditor’s Office

An election official with the Wacom County Auditor’s Office walked through the office’s 12-step process for handling returned ballots, saying the central processing center operates in the courthouse basement (room 103) and that strict chain-of-custody, signature review and secure storage procedures are used.

The overview matters because those procedures determine whether returned ballots are accepted, how signature issues are cured, when tabulation results are published and when an election is certified. The office emphasized multiple safeguards including dual-staff verification, an envelope-sorting machine that photographs signatures, and air‑gapped storage for ballot images.

The official said ballots are collected by two election workers and by equipment that routinely retrieves items from the post office and official drop boxes. Return slots remain open until 8:00 p.m. on election day; when staff are not collecting ballots, the drop access is locked and sealed. Ballots are carried to the central center in clear plastic containers with numbered seals tracked in official logs to preserve chain of custody.

Returned envelopes are sorted into baskets by deposit location and run through an envelope-sorting machine (referred to in the briefing as “agilis”). The machine scans barcodes on return envelopes, classifies envelopes by status, measures envelope thickness, diverts empty or unusually thick envelopes for manual review and takes a photograph of the signature on the return envelope for the next step of verification.

Signature verification is completed by permanent Auditor’s Office staff who, the official said, are trained by the Washington State Patrol. Staff compare the signature on the return envelope to signatures on the voter registration; if signatures match the envelope is marked accepted, and if a signature is missing or does not match the envelope is initially rejected. Rejected envelopes are run through the sorter a second time and are diverted for additional review.

When signature problems are identified, experienced staff organize and review the envelopes and contact affected voters by letter, phone, email or text, giving them an opportunity to correct the problem. The office separates the return envelope from the security sleeve containing the ballot, verifies that return envelopes are empty (by viewing through preformed holes), and removes ballots from the security sleeve for inspection.

Two distinct members of election staff verify that marked choices will be read by the tabulation system before ballots are scanned. After scanning, ballots are sealed in tamper-evident bags and placed into secure storage. Ballots and related materials are never discarded; they are retained according to the State of Washington’s records retention schedule.

Digital images of ballots are stored in an air‑gapped, internet‑disconnected system, the official said, and are reviewed by staff for overvotes, blank ballots and write‑ins. The staff follow the State of Washington’s voter‑intent manual to make consistent determinations; any issues involving voter intent are reviewed by the canvassing board in an open public meeting.

Results from the tabulation system are published first at 8:00 p.m. on election night and are posted to the Auditor’s Office website shortly thereafter. The office uploads additional results daily after election day if there are more than 500 ballots remaining to be counted. Certification occurs according to statutory timelines described by the office: 10 days after a special election, 14 days after a primary and 21 days after a general election.

For more information the official directed listeners to contact the Wacom County Auditor’s Office, Division of Elections.