Clerk reports 881 misassigned ballots in June primary; special election for Fallon Ward 1 appears likely

During the canvass of the June 9, 2026 Churchill County primary election, Clerk‑Treasurer Linda Rothery reported an error in voter assignment that resulted in 881 voters receiving the Precinct 2 ballot instead of the Precinct 1 ballot and therefore not receiving the Fallon City Council Ward 1 race.

Rothery said she discovered the issue after a large update to the county’s street and address file was imported into the election management system and the updated data was routed into a different processing bucket, causing the update not to push into the voter registration database. She said she personally corrected all affected voter records, mailed new voter‑registration cards to affected voters, and immediately contacted the Secretary of State’s office, the district attorney’s office and the City of Fallon. She also reported contacting all three Ward 1 candidates multiple times to keep them informed prior to any social‑media disclosure.

Rothery said the remedy is a special election for Fallon City Council Ward 1, and she submitted an affidavit to the city requesting that special election. She estimated the cost of a special election at about $5,500 to $7,500 and said her office can absorb the cost, with additional reimbursement expected from election grants (she reported receiving $11,000 so far and expecting more). She said she will add auditing measures and work with the Secretary of State’s office to prevent a recurrence.

Commissioners thanked Rothery for transparency and her handling of the situation. The board accepted the canvass of the primary election with the understanding a special election for Ward 1 will be pursued through the City of Fallon.

Next steps: Rothery said the City of Fallon will receive the affidavit and consider the special‑election request at its next meeting; the county will proceed with certification and mechanized reporting as required by statute.