In a letter to Jared Dearing, director of the state Board of Elections, Rep. Charles Booker has asked for five actions by the BOE related to the upcoming primary.
After noting that he “applauds” the work by the Governor, Secretary of State, Board of Elections, and county clerks to make the election run as smoothly as possible, he points out that those with “limited internet access, limited transportation, and limited time available” will have trouble participating. Therefore, he is requesting these five actions:
- Clarify that telephonic requests for absentee ballots will be considered legitimate absentee ballot applications. There has been some confusion that all requests have to go through the online portal; this would ensure that those who can only call will be treated equally.
- Mandate that voters who turn out to vote in person without an appointment will be allowed to cast their ballots and will not be turned away from the polls. The emergency regulations state that persons who do not vote absentee should schedule an appointment to vote in person. Booker points out how unusual this is, and wants to ensure that anyone showing up to vote in person will be allowed to do so.
- Clarify the “reasonable effort” required to reach voters whose signatures on absentee ballot envelopes are in dispute, and should require County Clerks to offer evening and weekend hours for voters to cure signature discrepancies. Voters with signature discrepancies only have six days to correct them, so it is imperative that they be contacted in time.
- Immediately release to the public the detailed elections plans submitted by each County Clerk. These plans will include detailed plans for staffing, recording, and fulfilling telephonic ballot requests.
- After June 23, the State Board of Elections should make available upon request a comprehensive list of absentee ballot requests, including duplicate requests, made through the secure online portal. The list should include each requestor’s name and address. Because this is our first election where a ballot can be directly requested via an online portal, it is necessary to provide additional transparency around the ballot requests and the ballot request process. Call logs of telephonic absentee ballot requests should also be made available upon request.
We have reached out to the SBOE for comment on these requests. When we receive their response, we will update the story.
A copy of Rep. Booker’s letter is below.