Elections office: about 200 June primary ballots remain; two new drop boxes planned for November

Queenie Barnard, Mono County Clerk-Recorder-Registrar, told the Board of Supervisors on June 9 that county election staff were still tabulating ballots from the June 2 primary and that roughly 200 mail ballots remained to be processed, along with about 30 provisional ballots.

"We do still have approximately 200 ballots remaining," Barnard said, noting that ballots postmarked on or before election day may be counted for up to seven days after the election. She also said the county's primary turnout was about 42%, which she described as typical for a primary, and that staff will post updated results online as remaining ballots are processed.

Barnard said county elections staff plan to add two new secure ballot drop boxes before the November 3, 2026 general election, with proposed locations in front of the Lee Vining Community Center and the Benton Community Center. "We are planning on purchasing and deploying two additional drop boxes in the county, hopefully, in time for the November election," she said.

She urged residents to consider serving as poll workers for November, saying the county needed additional staffing to handle higher turnout and to provide backup coverage: "Having more poll workers available and backup poll workers would be great."

Next steps: Barnard said the elections office will post updated tallies as stray mail ballots and cured ballots are received and will move forward with procurement and placement of the two drop boxes so they are available for the November election.