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Maricopa County leaders expand voting options

All voters may sign up for mail-in ballots

Posted 5/14/20

In this Nov. 6, 2018 file photo, Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes speaks at the Tabulation and Election Center in Phoenix. County leaders unanimously approved a new plan from the elections …

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Maricopa County leaders expand voting options

All voters may sign up for mail-in ballots

Posted

With lingering concerns about the ongoing COVID-19 public health crisis, county leaders have taken steps to ensure voting in the upcoming elections is convenient and safe for those practicing social distancing measures.

At a May 4 informal meeting of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, Scott Jarrett, director of Election Day and Emergency Voting at the county elections department, explained the need for improving and expanding voting options.

“We as a nation, a state and a county are facing a health crisis that has not been seen in generations,” Mr. Jarret said. “With the related economic fallout and the challenges from that, elections departments across the nation are planning for a series of summer and fall elections that could potentially have historic turnout.”

And while social distancing restrictions are being lessened across the country — with Ariz. Gov. Doug Ducey announcing this week the May 15 expiration of his stay-at-home order — many voters are still concerned about the coronavirus.

A Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted from April 29 to May 5 revealed 68% of voters expressed concerns that state-imposed public activity restrictions would be lifted too quickly, leading to further outbreak.

Viral concerns, however, are added what officials have long predicted will be a record-breaking turnout over the coming election season, Mr. Jarret explained.

“As that relates specifically to Maricopa County, the second-largest voting jurisdiction in the country with about 2.4 million voters, and this upcoming August Primary Election, it’s likely to be the largest, most significant in-person event since the governor instituted the shelter-in-place order,” he said. “If voting turnout projections are correct — and we’ve made some preliminary ones — it could be about 700,000 voters that would cast a ballot in the August Primary Election and if COVID-19 wasn’t prevalent, we would anticipate over 100,000 of those voters would likely vote in person on Election Day.”

He said pre-COVID-19 predictions for the General Election suggested as many as 300,000 voters would seek to cast in-person ballots in November as well.

Normally, this would be accomplished with a mix of up to 500 polling places designed to accommodate the bulk of those in-person voters over just one or a few days.

Instead, to accommodate safe sanitation and social distancing measures, elections officials plan to open fewer locations, but make them available for 10-14 days in what Mr. Jarrett described as an “all Vote Center” election model.

The Vote Centers will adhere to strict cleaning and physical distancing guidelines; and the 10 to 14-day in-person voting period will enable more voters to participate without needing to clump together in long Election Day queues.

The board, meeting in executive session following Mr. Jarrett’s presentation, voted unanimously to adopt the new voting plan. Officials will pair the expanded in-person voting period with an aggressive education campaign to encourage mail-in voting, he added.

How to sign up for mail-in ballots

Only five states have all vote-by-mail elections systems, where every voter receives a ballot, whether they request one or not. Those states include Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

But while mail-in balloting is not automatic in Arizona, all voters have the option to sign up for mail-in ballots.

Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes touted the county’s system, which allows voters to opt for mail-in ballots for individual elections or sign up to receive them permanently going forward.

“Maricopa County has been providing voters with a safe and secure ballot-by-mail option for decades. Our rigorous signature verification and ballot tracking process provides strong oversight of this voting option,” Mr. Fontes told Daily Independent. “Given COVID-19, we have made it easier for voters to request a ballot in the mail — all from the comfort of home.”

Nearly 74% of the county’s estimated 2.4 million registered voters have already taken advantage of this option by signing up for the Permanent Early Voting List. Another 300,064 who’d previously been registered to vote are currently listed as “inactive” due to having sat out the past two federal elections.

To help the remaining 26% of the county’s registered voters — and those not currently registered or active — officials have launched a special website for would-be voters, explained Megan Gilbertson, communications director for the Maricopa County Elections Department.

“The best place for voters to go is BeBallotReady.vote,” Ms. Gilbertson stated. “There they can see if they’re registered, if they’re on the PEVL, and can sign up to get a ballot in the mail one-time or permanently.”

Fortunately, all of the effort needed to check voter registration status, register, renew or sign up for mail-in ballots can be completed online and for free within a few minutes.

At the BeBallotReady.vote site, anyone can quickly check to ensure they are or are not registered by entering date of birth, last name, home address number and just one of four additional data fields, choosing from last four of social security number, Arizona driver’s license number, voter ID number or state ID number.

The site creates a personalized dashboard, where voters can check on the status of their mail-in ballots, find out who their specific representatives are, and get other useful elections information.

Those not already registered are directed to servicearizona.com — the Arizona Department of Transportation’s Motor Vehicles Division website — to complete their voter registration online. Those who register or renew there can also choose the PEVL as part of the application process.

Registration deadlines

To vote in the Aug. 4 Primary Election, voters must be registered by Monday, July 6. Primary voters must also be register as a Democrat, Republican or Libertarian to vote in their own party’s races.

Those registered as Independent can vote in any primary they choose, as long as they choose ahead of time or vote in person, Mr. Fontes explained.

“It’s also important to add that Independent voters, or those without a designated party, will need to make a ballot choice to participate in the August Primary, even if they are already on the Permanent Early Voting List,” Mr. Fontes stated.

Independents have until July 29 to inform the elections department which mail-in ballot they prefer; or else they must request the appropriate ballot in-person.

Libertarian voters may select their own party-specific ballot, though the party does not allow Independents to participate in their primary, Ms. Gilbertson explained.

“We sent 90-day notices to all PEVL voters, including independents. Voters have the option to return that card with their ballot choice or go online to BeBallotReady.Vote to select a ballot,” she stated.

Arizona voters can also choose a city/town-only ballot, which allows them to participate in local and municipal elections, while forgoing county, state and federal elections altogether.

Those who’ve registered on the PEVL will automatically receive their mail-in ballots by mail about 27 days before every election in which they are eligible to vote.

Visit servicearizona.com to register online or visit recorder.maricopa.gov for more information.