In a move to ensure the accuracy of ballot tabulation equipment, the County Elections Office of Vancouver has announced a manual count to be performed for a random selection of ballots from the recent City Council Position No. 1 race. This audit, set to take place on Wednesday, Aug. 6 at 9 a.m., will manually verify approximately 600 ballots to confirm that the machines tallied the votes properly.
During the audit, the selected ballots are to be added to the total returns of Election Day. Despite the digital age pressing firmly upon us, there remains a need to occasionally verify manually, to ensure that the seamless integration of technology and democracy has not failed us. Citizens interested in the process or wishing to update their voter registration have until 8 p.m. on Election Day, Aug. 5, though they must do so in person at the Elections Office, according to details issued by the official announcement.
Any voter who has yet to receive their ballot is advised to reach out to the Elections Office directly at 564.397.2345 or through their email at [email protected]. As an alternative, voters can download a replacement ballot from VoteWA.gov simply by signing in using their name and date of birth, then clicking “Download Replacement Ballot Packet,” as advised in the official statement. The instructions provided must be followed to print the declaration sheet and ballot, all of which must be returned by the voter.
The Elections Office wishes to ensure maximum accessibility and has extended their hours to accommodate voters. They will remain open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Additionally, on Election Day, the office will extend operations from 7 a.m. to run until 8 p.m., as to allow potentially every last vote to be cast and accounted for. This extended availability depicts the office's commitment to upholding the electoral process and facilitating voter participation in every possible way.
