VANCOUVER, Wash. — US Election officials in Vancouver, Washington, are urging voters to verify the status of their absentee ballots after an arsonist ignited a ballot drop box early Monday, damaging hundreds of ballots just one week before Election Day.
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While such incidents targeting ballot drop boxes are rare, experts have noted that election infrastructure has been fortified over the last decade. Enhanced security measures include 24-hour surveillance, fire suppression systems, and advanced ballot tracking technology to mitigate the impact of any potential interference.
“These are the types of scenarios that election officials have been preparing for as part of their contingency planning,” said Claire Woodall-Vogg, former executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission. “While rare, election officials are equipped to handle these situations.”
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The arson attack on Monday destroyed hundreds of ballots in Vancouver, Washington, and three in Portland, Oregon. This incident follows other ballot damage cases reported last week in Florida and Arizona. In Phoenix, a man was arrested for allegedly setting fire to a USPS collection mailbox, destroying five ballots. Additionally, federal prosecutors in Florida charged a man with disposing of hundreds of pieces of election mail, including at least one ballot.
What Voters Need to Know if Their Ballot Is Affected
For those concerned about ballot integrity, voters should contact their local election office to verify if their ballot has been received. Senior voting policy researcher Brian Hinkle of the Movement Advancement Project emphasized the availability of tracking services in 47 states, which allow voters to confirm if their ballots have been mailed, received, and counted. In Clark County, where Vancouver is located, voters can monitor their ballot status via the VoteWA online tool.
“If voters don’t receive confirmation that their ballot has been accepted or received by the county office, that’s an indicator something might be wrong,” explained Steve Olsen, president of BallotTrax, which covers ballot tracking for 28% of U.S. voters.
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Election officials often reach out to voters impacted by incidents, offering replacement ballots or, if needed, directing them to vote in person. Given that the USPS recommends mailing ballots by October 29 to ensure timely receipt, some voters may need to opt for in-person voting if a replacement ballot is requested close to Election Day.
“There are systems in place in every state to ensure a vote isn’t lost to a criminal act,” added Woodall-Vogg.
How Election Officials Track Ballots
Election officials rely on “intelligent mail barcodes” embedded in ballot envelopes to track individual ballots, allowing voters to monitor their ballot’s journey from mailing to reception.
“Voters can track their ballots just like they would a package,” Hinkle said, explaining that tracking is restricted to the envelope, preserving voter privacy.
BallotTrax provides ballot tracking in 546 counties across the U.S., monitoring over 240 million ballots. Established in 2009, the company expanded significantly in 2020, as many areas transitioned to mail-in voting during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Olsen explained that once a ballot reaches a local election office and is separated from its return envelope, it is no longer linked to the voter, preserving ballot anonymity.
Handling Damaged Ballots
If a ballot is damaged but still readable, election workers can remake it to ensure it is machine-readable, a process known as “ballot duplication.” Bipartisan teams work on reconstructing these ballots to uphold voter intent.
“Election workers reconstruct the ballot onto a clean one to preserve voter intent,” said Hinkle.
Voters who suspect ballot damage should contact their election office for confirmation or to request a replacement.
Are Ballot Drop Boxes Safe?
Despite recent incidents, experts maintain that ballot drop boxes remain among the safest voting options. Drop boxes are often tamper-proof, bolted to the ground, monitored by 24-hour surveillance, and equipped with fire suppression systems. Ballot collections are managed by two-person teams to ensure chain-of-custody security.
“We have a chain-of-custody protocol for tracking when ballots are collected and delivered, and all ballots have barcodes for added security,” said George Dreckmann, a Milwaukee poll worker. “In many cases, the drop box system is as secure, if not more so, than mailing.”
Many drop boxes employ fire suppression systems using powder to extinguish fires rather than water, which prevents additional ballot damage. While the fire suppression system failed during Monday’s incident in Clark County, election officials credited the system for saving over 400 ballots in neighboring Multnomah County, Oregon.
“These boxes are very secure, and voters should feel confident in using them,” assured Hinkle.