PORT ANGELES — The state Secretary of State’s Office has agreed to perform an out-of-cycle review of Clallam County election procedures in the wake of the Jan. 25 discovery of 125 uncounted general election ballots, Auditor Shoona Riggs said.
Exactly when the audit occurs will depend on voter turnout, Riggs told the Clallam County Canvassing Board last week.
“At filing week, we’ll know if they can do the [August] primary,” Riggs said Wednesday. “We have to have at least half the county participating in order for them to do a review.”
The unopened general election ballots were found inside the walk-up ballot drop box on the east side of the county courthouse as election division staff inspected drop boxes in advance of the Feb. 14 special election.
The ballots were not opened because the Nov. 8 election had been certified. They would not have changed the result of any contested race or measure.
The Canvassing Board accepted Wednesday a final report on the uncounted ballots. It also passed a resolution supporting Riggs’ proposed recommendations and remedial steps.
“While the failure to locate, collect and count the 125 ballots is an egregious oversight, the Canvassing Board is of the opinion that no election laws/policies were knowingly, willfully or fraudulently violated,” according to the resolution approved by County Commissioner Mark Ozias and Prosecuting Attorney Mark Nichols.
“The Canvassing Board believes that this matter has been fairly and fully resolved by the Clallam County Auditor’s prompt disclosure and remedial actions.”
Riggs, who abstained from voting on the resolution, notified the Canvassing Board and Secretary of State’s Office about the missing ballots Jan. 26.
She accepted the voluntary resignation of Elections Supervisor Ken Hugoniot that same day.
Although the error originated in the election division, Riggs, herself a former elections supervisor, took responsibility for the oversight.
“Ultimately, it is the Clallam County Auditor that is responsible for the supervision and conduct of elections withing the county,” the report concludes.
Riggs told the Canvassing Board that election policies and procedures, including a “sweep of all of the drop boxes,” have been updated.
The auditor will meet with the election division before the first day of each election cycle to preview steps that need to be followed, according to the report.
Voters whose ballots were deposited in the east courthouse walk-up drop box between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Election Day were notified that their votes were not counted. They were credited for participating in the election.
“Most of them, when they call, they’re pretty upset,” Riggs told the Canvassing Board.
“But by the time I got off the phone with them, they were pretty satisfied. They felt like we were doing the best that we could under the circumstances that we were in.”
One caller who left a nasty phone message later apologized to Riggs in person, she said.
“That’s nice to hear,” Ozias said. “It shows how much people care about their right to vote.”
Ozias said he appreciated the willingness of the Secretary of State’s Office to perform the election audit.
“I’m really glad to have that resource,” Ozias told Riggs.
“Hopefully, learning about the proactive approach that you and the office is taking,” he added, “I suspect that will do nothing but build confidence among the citizenry.”
The Canvassing Board resolution will be maintained in the files of the auditor’s office along with the final report, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Brian Wendt said.
“One of the reasons why the auditor wanted to come to this board is to have another set of eyes take a look at the review process that we’ve undergone,” Wendt said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsula dailynews.com.
