YAKIMA, Wash. – As Election Day approaches, voters in Yakima County have begun turning in their ballots. Voter concerns about ballot safety have been brought to the Yakima County Auditor’s office.
Yakima County Auditor Charles Ross has received reports about the use of unofficial drop boxes throughout the city and political campaigners going door to door saying they’ll turn in ballots.
“If a person calls and says, ‘Hey, a person was knocking on my door and asking if they could collect my ballot,’ we typically try to tell the person who’s complaining that that’s perfectly fine and normal. Please don’t hand your ballot to other people is what we typically tell people,” Ross said.
Washington is one of 31 states allowing others to handle and submit ballots on behalf of voters. It’s legal to set up and use ballot drop boxes or collect ballots door-to-door as long as they are properly submitted on time.
According to the Attorney General of Washington, it’s illegal to collect ballots to knowingly destroy, alter, deface, conceal, or discard another person’s ballot. Doing so will result in a gross misdemeanor.
“Where a person would get themselves into trouble is if they’re again, coercing voters or if they’re trying to reward a voter or pay for a ballot. Those are all activities that are against the law. You definitely cannot be collecting other people’s ballots and then not delivering them,” Ross said.
Marie Surgeon, a long-time resident of Yakima County, trusts the official ballot drop boxes and prefers the boxes over mailing ballots in.
“Yes, I’m pretty confident that they’re (Yakima County Auditor’s Office) doing everything they can to make it right,” Surgeon said.
Ballot boxes can be found in every city. The color of the boxes depends on the county they are in. Official Yakima County ballot boxes are built into the ground, bright red and have official city logos on the side.
“We have one in every city, and then we have a few in the unincorporated areas also. But each city, each town has their drop box and most of them are located close to the town hall,” Ross said.
Voters can ensure their ballots reach the auditor’s office by verifying status online. Information and resources can be found here.
