I was asked to reflect on the 2024 general election. Obviously, we’ve heard a lot in the national, statewide and local media. Incidents are occurring all over the country, but after getting some sleep back, I would like to look back and share my thoughts.
There was a lot of discussion about election security, from securing equipment to mail, ballot boxes, ballots, and more. These are things we actually think about every election, but there was a more detailed discussion. There was also a mail incident in Iowa. Fires have also been reported at ballot boxes in Oregon and Washington. I’m glad I decided to put the ballot box at the election center. This was for a cost of less than $100. Also, if we chose the external ballot box option, we didn’t want anyone to take away the ballot box.
One of the first big jobs is to prepare the ballots for each of the different divisions. That may not mean much to many people, but to my deputy campaign representative, Jesse Cizek, information about the additional bond referendum and the missing question for unincorporated parts of Marshall County. We understand very well when we receive, but this is a big job. Marshall County ended up having the most bond referendums in the state. This is not what we wanted to win because we ended up with 51 different voting formats, which made setting up the ballots very complicated. Of course, Jesse rose to the challenge, working with vendors to prepare ballots and testing them on all machines. On October 5th, there was a great article in the Republican County Auditor/Recorder’s Office in the Times about preparations for the November 5th election. News, Sports, Jobs – The Times Republican explains the testing process to verify that ballots are counted correctly by the Freedom Vote Scanner. There were no general participants. However, we are reporting and as a department, we feel that we will be ready when this task is completed.
On October 16th, we mailed out 1,700 absentee ballots, and our team was busy on the first day with nearly 400 in-person voters at the Election Center (formerly First Station) . We employ temporary workers on the front lines, as well as several additional workers in the back office who work the same number of hours as Jesse and I. These back-office workers started work in early September and continued until last week. Throughout the absentee voting period, we counted 8,323 ballots, including two for Safe at Home. Safe at Home is an individual registered with the Iowa Secretary of State and your ballot will be sent through them. This is for people who need to keep their identity secret for security reasons.
We’ve talked a lot about absentee voting and early voting, but Iowa doesn’t count votes until Election Day, and some large counties start counting absentee ballots the day before. Therefore, it is an absentee voting state. Early voting states begin counting votes once they are cast.
There were 22 additional absentee ballots that were not counted by the Special Precinct Board on November 4 or 5 for the following reasons:
• 9 were not signed
• One was not sealed.
• One is signed by POA
• One was voted by a son rather than a healthcare facility voter.
• One person arrives after 8pm on Election Day.
• 4 people died before voting day
• Five were rejected by absentee challenge voters who did not bring the proper documentation, and one of the five submitted their documentation too late.
For absentee ballots that are not signed or stamped, many will address the issue by contacting the voter by phone, email, or letter.
On Election Day, November 5, 9,080 voters cast their votes at 11 polling locations. It was a busy day for all of these locations, with many experienced Precinct Election Officials (PEOs) working alongside new PEOs. I heard so many positive comments about their experience. We offer both online and in-person training options.
Although the challenged voter list we received from the Iowa Secretary of State on October 22nd was in a difficult situation, the voters who had to deal with this situation were very gracious, and many people returned to the U.S. just in case. They brought their naturalization certificates and U.S. passports. All they have to do is vote on a regular ballot. I hope this issue doesn’t happen again, especially as it did during this election.
Please also note that the general election was officially held after the second election was held on November 18th at 9am. Everyone thinks that the job is done after Election Day, but I really think the work after Election Day is even harder. various tasks. We are still working on rebalancing voter credits and expect to have them completed by December 1st. The Secretary of State hasn’t thought about all the other work we’ve put off, so we’re going to get this done next week, we just need to find two more, not bad for 9,080. I think Marshall County is lucky because there are 20 counties currently working on recounts.
When we hear that it takes a village, this is never more true than when talking about elections, especially general elections. Looking back, I have many people to thank.
• Jessica Cizek, Deputy Elections Officer – She does it all, but never loses her cool.
• Comptroller/Recorder’s Office Staff – They do everything from covering other duties to answering the phone and explaining the difference between absentee and early voting over and over again.
• Construction and ground staff – delivery/retrieval of election equipment, opening/closing laptops, etc.
• Sheriff’s Deputies – Provides additional security and results pickup
• Engineer’s and Lawyer’s Office staff – receiving results;
• Absentee voting workers since mid-October, also write-in committee on November 6th
• Healthcare workers after October 22nd
• Back-office election staff have been working since early September.
• Two Grinnell College students have worked 10 hours a week since early October.
• Precinct election officials – Election day – Chairpersons and staff of 11 polling stations.
• Special Provincial Committee – November 4th and 5th, then 7th, 8th, and 12th.
• Marshall County Patrons – We had long lines and stickers were missing in some places, but everyone was very patient and very kind to the employees.
Thank you, everyone in Marshall County, for being kind to Iowa and for having good old Iowa common sense.
——
Nan Benson, a Republican from State Center;
Marshall County Auditor/Recorder.
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