Oct. 17, 2004

Safeguards in place for voters who receive duplicate ballots

Late last week, election officials learned some voters received duplicate ballots. Due to the ongoing surge in voter registration activity and the legal deadline to mail absentee ballots, some 3,500 King County voters may have received duplicate ballots at the same address. Those voters are advised to vote and return one ballot and discard the duplicates.

King County election officials want to reassure absentee voters of the safeguards in place to ensure their votes count and that only one ballot per voter is counted.

"As voter records were updated after the initial mailing of absentee ballots, the system recognized the change and generated another ballot," said Dean Logan, director of King County Records, Elections and Licensing Services. "This is exactly what we want to happen when the update is a change in the voter's address - this ensures the voter gets the correct ballot style for their new address."

However, changes and updates that do not affect the address or ballot style - such as adding a phone number, a drivers' license number, or a middle initial also generated a new ballot.

Election officials corrected the problem over the weekend, identified the voters affected, and began calling them to advise them of the situation and reassure them of the integrity of their vote.

"I want to assure the public we have corrected this problem," said Logan. "What's most important is that all voters who requested an absentee ballot have a ballot delivered to their most current address and that they have enough time to vote and return their ballot by November 2."

Elections administrators in Washington State have the smallest window of time in the country to transition from the primary to the General Election. With just six weeks between certification of the September primary and the General Election, officials began preparing absentee ballots around Oct.1 to meet the Oct.15 deadline for mailing ballots to registered absentee voters. This created an overlap where ballots were prepared for mailing at the same time additional address changes and updates to voter registration records were being processed.

Voters who receive duplicate ballots are cautioned not to cast multiple ballots. King County's election system tracks incoming ballots to ensure that only one ballot per voter is counted. The original ballot that was issued is suspended in the system and only processed if the re-issued ballot is not received by certification of the election.

Out of more than 606,000 voters requesting absentee ballots, about 2,800 have had address changes since the original mailing and a new ballot has been appropriately sent to their new address.

King County Elections processed and mailed an additional 4,000 absentee ballots over the weekend, and accepted 1,250 new in-person registrations.

Prospective voters who are not registered and wish to vote in the General Election, must register in-person at the King County Elections Office or through the Vote Mobile by Monday, Oct.18. The King County Elections office will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct.18. For a list of Vote Mobile locations, visit http://www.metrokc.gov/elections/news/2004_10_11.htm .

Voters with concerns or questions should contact the Elections Office at (206) 296-VOTE (8683).

Updated: Oct. 17, 2004

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