Clackamas County - OR issued the following announcement on May 6.
Clackamas County Board of County Commissioner Chair Tootie Smith issued a statement on the recent news from Clackamas County Clerk Sherry Hall that some ballots for the May 17 Primary Election were found to have defective barcodes due to a printing error.
Chair Smith's statement as follows:
As a voter and Chair of the Clackamas County Commission, I was aghast when I heard of the misprinting of ballots mailed to voters.
Many questions came through my mind: Is my ballot secure? Will my vote count? How can I trust government to do what is right?
Nothing is more honorable and sacred than the integrity of elections and full trust in the outcome.
Regardless of intent or innocence of a mistake, there will be lingering questions about this election and the process used to remedy the situation.
The elected County Clerk is an independent official of the county and must assure the fair and unbiased operations of elections. If there were time or an allowance in law, I would call that the ballots be reprinted and reissued. However, it is not possible to do that.
As Chair of the Clackamas County Commission, I do not have authority over the elected County Clerk. However, my most important job is to build public trust in government. You can rest assured I am always pushing for accountability and transparency in future elections.
I was assured by the Oregon Secretary of State this morning in a phone call that Oregon law addresses the issue of damaged ballots as in this case.
Clackamas County Elections will be using the method as laid out in law to ensure accuracy and honor voter intent. Immediate election results could be delayed by the sheer volume of affected ballots, which is not completely known at this time.
The Oregon legislature has allowed an additional seven days to process and count ballots, if necessary.
For now, the most important action we can collectively take is to VOTE, like it matters – because it does.
Clackamas County President Statement Regarding Ballots: May 6, 2022
As a voter and chair of the Clackamas County Commission, I was horrified when I learned of the misprint on the ballots sent to voters.
I thought of many questions: Will my ballot be safe? Will my vote count? How can I trust the government to do the right thing?
Nothing is more honorable and sacred than the integrity of the elections and full confidence in the result.
Regardless of the intent or innocence of a mistake, questions will remain about this election and the process used to remedy the situation.
The elected county clerk is an independent county official who is charged with ensuring the fair and impartial conduct of elections. If time or law permitted, she would request that the ballots be reprinted and reissued. However, it is not possible.
As chair of the Clackamas County Commission, I have no authority over the elected County Clerk. However, my most important job is to build public trust in government. You can count on me to always demand accountability and transparency in future elections.
The Oregon Secretary of State assured me in a phone call this morning that Oregon law addresses the problem of damaged ballots, as in this case.
Clackamas County Elections will use the method as provided by law in order to ensure accuracy and honor voter intent. The immediate results of the election could be delayed due to the large volume of affected ballots, the totality of which is unknown at this time.
The Oregon legislature has provided an additional seven days to process and count ballots, if necessary.
For now, the best thing we can do together is VOTE, as if it were important: because it is.
Original source can be found here.
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