The final steps of the election process mean ensuring every eligible vote is counted before the official certification.
Jackson County Administrator of Elections Drew McMillan said the office is currently processing provisional ballots to determine if they meet the legal requirements for inclusion in the final tally.
“So if someone came to the polls without an ID, they have, they vote on paper,” McMillan said, “And they have two business days to get their, ID to us, um, to show that they are a US citizen and registered voter.”
McMillan said there are five remaining provisional ballots in Jackson County that could potentially be added to the totals. McMillan said these include three green provisional ballots from voters who believe they are registered and two orange provisional ballots from voters who did not present an identification at the polls.
McMillan said the office uses a voter-verified paper audit trail from every voting machine to reconcile the number of ballots cast with the number of check-ins recorded on poll pads. McMillan said the staff must also ensure all voters are correctly assigned to their respective precincts and districts within the system.
McMillan said the election day process was quiet and did not produce any irregularities that would impact the outcome of the races. McMillan said that while the remaining five ballots will be reviewed by a provisional counting board, they will not change any of the results from the election.
“I don’t foresee anything that, uh, would change any, any results, you know, everything was, was, uh, went well for us,” McMillan said.
McMillan said once the certification is complete, the office will begin preparing for the November general election by setting hours and re-locking absentee boxes. McMillan said the newly elected officials will officially take their oaths of office on September 1.
McMillan said the certification meeting is scheduled for 8:30 AM on August 18 to finalize the results of the recent election.
