Hundreds of Tri-Cities votes may not be counted in presidential primary. A box wasn’t checked

Hundreds of Tri-Cities votes in next Tuesday’s presidential primary may not count because people didn’t pick a party on the outside of the envelope.

This is the first time in Washington state the Democratic Party has relied solely on a ballot to pick their candidate. It’s the second time for the Republican Party.

As of last week, more than 420,000 people across the state returned their ballots.

While Republicans only have one candidate to pick from, the remaining Democratic candidates are battling over 89 pledged delegates.

About 24,000 voters from Benton County turned in their ballots as of Tuesday morning. Franklin County did not release its numbers yet.

As part of the process people need to mark which party they’re voting for on the outside of their envelope.

The Legislature moved the state’s presidential primary elections from May to March this year making the state’s choices more relevant in the presidential race.

The party choice is on the outside of the envelope so local election officials can sort the envelopes before they are counted, according to state officials.

The change hasn’t sat well with hundreds voters.

As of Tuesday morning, Benton County sent out 750 letters to voters asking them to either fix their signature or pick a party.

Franklin County Auditor Matt Beaton said a larger than usual number of voters did not pick a party. He did not release how many.

About 36,000 across the state are at risk of not being counted, according to a King5 report.

In the Tri-Cities, some voters actually wrote on their ballot envelope why they didn’t pick a party on the outside, said Beaton and Benton County Elections Manager Amanda Hatfield. Some said they were scared of retaliation and others said they simply didn’t want their party affiliation to be public.

While your vote will stay private, the choice is a public record for 60 days, Beaton said.

“At some point, you have to have faith in the process,” he said.

What will happen

The questioned ballots will remain sealed until voters pick a party.

If people receive a letter, they can fill it out and return it with their pick. The forms need to be returned with the letters before March 20 when the election is certified. If the voters don’t, their vote won’t be counted.

While the county officials run the elections, they don’t have any control over the political parties’ primary process, Beaton explained.

The parties want to make sure people are declaring their party before their vote is counted. No one can see the ballot inside, he said.

“It’s their election,” he said.

This story was originally published March 3, 2020 at 2:47 PM.