Long lines expected at Tri-Cities ballot drop boxes on election day

Last-minute Tri-Cities voters may find long lines at drop boxes and voting centers on Tuesday.

The return of ballots has slowed since the initial rush, but thousands of ballots remain outstanding in Benton and Franklin counties.

Franklin County had 64 percent of its ballots returned by Sunday, and Benton County reported 62 percent turnout on Friday, according to county election officials.

Both counties saw about 75 percent voter turnout in the 2016 presidential election, and are expecting a bigger turnout this year. Still, so far, both are lagging behind the statewide average of 68 percent returns.

The Benton County Auditor’s Office issued a warning Monday about the potential rush of last-minute voters at drop boxes and at the voting center at 2610 N. Columbia Center Boulevard. The center will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on election day.

Benton County officials are offering the full range of help for voters at the voting center, including getting a replacement ballot, changing an address and registering to vote. People can register and vote until 8 p.m. Nov. 3.

“Making sure voters have the ability to register, receive and return a ballot is the highest priority for us,” Benton County Auditor Brenda Chilton said. “Experience shows that the lines can be long late in the day on election day.”

Both counties are recommending voters use the ballot drop boxes to ensure that their vote is counted. Ballots put in the mail on Tuesday will not be postmarked in time to count, say officials.

Contact the Benton County Auditor’s Office at 509-736-3085 or the Franklin County Auditor’s Office at 509-545-3538 with any

questions.

Don’t wait

Concerns about the ballots arriving in the mail on time fueled a surge of early ballot returns in drop boxes this year.

Benton County received 28 percent of its ballots back right away. While Franklin County started slower, receiving 42 percent of its ballots within the first five days.

The ballots were collected daily from the boxes, and the final round will be pick up at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Any ballots dropped off after that won’t count.

Ballots with a postmark of Nov. 3 that arrive in the next few days will still be counted, under state law.

So far, both counties have received ballots that weren’t filled out correctly.

Benton County had 871 ballots missing or with a problem with a signature and Franklin County has reported that 631 ballots with similar issues.

While the ballots aren’t counted until election day, they are already being processed by county elections employees to make sure that everything is correct. When there is a problem, a notice is sent directly to voter. If the problem isn’t fixed, than a follow up call is made.

The decision to reject a ballot is in the hands of a three-member canvassing board. That normally includes the auditor, the chair of the county commissioners and the county prosecutor.

People who want to check on the status of their ballot can go to voter.votewa.gov. After entering your name and birthday, you can click on ballot status on the side.