By Blake Proctor
With all members in attendance via telephone conference call, the Board of Elections had one thought on its collective mind – how to hold the General Election on November 9th amid the pandemic.
Executive Director Christopher Williams informed the Board that neither the State Board of Elections nor the Legislature had as yet made plans nor issued definitive policies for One-stop voting during the General Election; however, plans apparently are to be completed by local boards by July 31st. The members discussed the need for continued social distancing; and, although no one can predict the Covid-19 situation six months from now, it is important to be prepared in case such a plan is needed.
There was also general discussion about the possible need to consolidate polling places to ensure that social distancing can take place, because several sites are known to be too small to ensure distancing. Board members are tasked with inspecting polling places periodically, and this needs to be done again prior to the Primary Election.
The use of “curb-side” and “drive-through” voting was briefly discussed, possibly using gymnasiums for curb-side and old bank drive-through windows for drive-through
The board pondered the question of the difficulty of fully staffing the One-stop polling places. It was agreed that the raises provided by the board at its April meeting would surely help; Mr. Williams stated that the budget increase would probably not be as much as first thought, although the actual figures were not yet in hand.
Mr. Williams announced that he has ordered 40 sneeze guards through the State Purchasing Department to protect poll workers at the polling places, at a cost of between $99 and $138 each, depending on the number purchased statewide by the Department. It is anticipated that the state will reimburse for these items, as well as other personal protective equipment (PPE) that may be needed by county boards throughout the state. For instance, each poll worker with be issued a pen which they will keep on them for their use only.
Discussion then turned to the matter of absentee ballots. It was thought that 2,000 or perhaps more absentee ballots would be handled by poll workers, and that this could cause them problems from voters licking the envelopes. It was suggested that return envelopes supplied by the board be self-sealing.
Mr. Williams noted in passing that the primary ballots had not yet been printed. Also, in response to a question about culling the voter rolls, he stated that the rolls are culled monthly to ensure that only eligible live voters were registered to cast their ballots.
In an unfinished matter, Mr. Williams notified the Board that the County had re-advertised for the part-time position the Board has been trying to fill. There were again only two applications, neither of which met the Board’s requirements. It was decided that County Human Resources would advertise for four weeks instead of two in an attempt to find qualified applicants.
It was agreed that all board members should think about the situation and ponder alternatives for discussion at the June 9th meeting. Also, the board agreed that, depending on direction from the Governor’s office, the board might be able meet in person in June in the Board of Elections offices; social distancing and masks would be required. The meeting adjourned at 5:45 p.m.
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