Election workers are busy preparing for voters to hand-deliver their ballots to the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder's office on Tuesday, while other staffers are working behind the scenes to adjudicate ballot-mismatch issues.
Employees told KSBY they look for nicks, tears, signature mismatches, and even instances where it appears a voter chose one original candidate, then tried to erase their mark and intentionally select a different candidate.
When a vote by mail is turned in, regardless of how we received it, whether it’s through a drop box, mail, or at a polling place on election night, there is a process that needs to be done to verify that the correct person voted that ballot," said Melanie Foster, the SLO County Deputy Director Clerk-Recorder. She is also the longest-serving employee in the office.
Ballots in question go through a process called "ballot adjudication" when bubbles on a ballot are marked unclearly. The ballot is then analyzed by three different election employees to correctly determine which answer was meant to be selected. Their work is monitored "live" as they are in process, reviewing the ballots under camera review.
To avoid your ballot from having to be adjudicated, you can hand-deliver it to the Elections Counter in the office. Robert Franzen drove from his residence in Nipomo for precisely this reason, as he told KSBY his signature has changed over the years. He was assured his signature was approved.
If you want your vote to count in the first results released on Tuesday night's primary election in San Luis Obispo County, you have the opportunity to bring your ballot into the County Clerk-Recorder's Office and sign it in front of an election worker. This will ensure your ballot is automatically included in the tally set to be released at 8 p.m. Election results will be posted on the county's website at 8 p.m. at THIS LINK.
Spokesperson Erin Clausen told KSBY that all ballots will be counted once the tally is finalized within a few days. If you walk into the building and sign in front of a clerk, your vote will be a part of the first release of results. To find out where your ballot is in the system, you can log on to the California Secretary of State's website and register for BALLOTTRAKS at THIS LINK.
"We get thousands and thousands of ballots dropped off at polling places on Election Day, mail ballots, which is perfectly fine and absolutely a part of the voting process," Clausen said. "But those ballots, a lot of people do not realize, get signature-verified and counted after Election Day. So by offering this new opportunity to come and vote in-person at our office, that means they get signature verified on-the-spot, and will be a part of the election night results."
Additionally, if you misplaced your ballot but want to ensure your vote counts, you can walk up to the counter where Clausen says they will void your original ballot and provide you with one you can sign and have your signature verified in-person, as well.
“When a vote by mail is turned in, regardless of how we received it, whether it’s through a drop box, mail, or at a polling place on election night, there is a process that needs to be done to verify that the correct person voted that ballot.”
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. California law requires that employees scheduled to work during that time be allowed to take up to two hours off to vote, without losing any pay. The law states you may take as much time off as you need to vote, but only two hours of that time will be paid. The flyer California provides to employers to post with this information can be found AT THIS LINK.
The County-Clerk Recorder's office is located at 1055 Monterey Street in San Luis Obispo. Street parking in the area is limited; however, there are three public parking garages nearby. Here is a list of those locations:
- 919 Palm Street Parking Garage (0.1 miles away)
- 842 Palm Street Parking Structure: (.15 miles away)
- 881 Marsh Street Parking Structure (.2 miles away)
Ballots deposited in the drop box, which carries a reminder reading, "No naked ballots here!" is a reminder that all ballots either put in the box or handed to an election worker at the curb, must be in their envelope and your signature must be on the outside.
Voters planning to visit the office on Tuesday should also be aware that services unrelated to the election, including civil ceremonies, will not be available.
Voters have until 8 p.m. on June 2 to vote at a polling location or drop off their ballot in a dropbox or at the Clerk-Recorder's Office.
If you have a story idea you would like to send to KSBY News Reporter Jessica Roe, you can reach her directly via email at jessica.roe@ksby.com.
