no ballot – With Maryland’s primary early voting set to begin June 11, leaders in Montgomery County said replacement mail-in ballots will not be counted twice after more than 437,000 had to be reissued due to a vendor error last month.
The morning of early voting in Maryland’s primary doesn’t start with a question mark for everyone. It starts with a reassurance.
On June 11, Montgomery County voters will be able to cast ballots through June 18, with Election Day set for June 23. The timeline arrives just days after the State Board of Elections outlined updated guidelines on how mail-in ballots will be tabulated.
The renewed focus follows last month’s emergency replacements: more than 437. 000 mail-in ballots had to be replaced because of an error by the vendor that sent out the ballots. The mistake meant an undetermined number of voters received ballots that didn’t match their party registration. and replacement ballots were sent out.
David Naimon, president of the Montgomery County Board of Elections, said the county has been fielding questions from voters about what the replacement process means for tabulation.
“We’re getting a lot of questions about that,” Naimon said. “A lot of good information about this and other subjects is available at the county website,” he added, pointing voters to 777Vote.org.
Montgomery County has 14 early voting sites open from June 11 through June 18.
Lawrence Halloran, a substitute member of the Montgomery County Board of Elections, emphasized that the system prevents double counting. He said the replacement ballots issued by the state have a unique bar code.
Halloran explained how that protection works if a voter submits both a first ballot and a replacement: “we know it’s a second ballot. The first one is put aside. It’s not counted unless and until it’s determined that nothing else has come in from that voter.”
A Republican, Halloran said the precautions are not brand-new. He described common scenarios that lead to replacements—if someone spills coffee on a ballot. destroys it. or fills out a ballot incorrectly—saying election staff already know how to track the first and second ballots and ensure only one gets counted.
“The safeguards and procedures are well-established and they are firmly in place,” Halloran said.
Naimon, a Democrat, tied the assurances to the way results are processed. He said that during the canvassing process, ballots can only be opened by bipartisan teams at the public mail-in ballot canvass. The deadline for counting ballots is July 6 at 10 a.m.
For voters who feel frustrated by the printing snafu, Halloran said the “best recourse” is to use the replacement ballot—by mailing it, taking it to a drop box, an early voting site, or your local voting precinct.
If someone originally signed up for a mail-in ballot but decides to vote in person instead, Halloran said they’ll have to complete a provisional ballot. He said the provisional ballot “won’t be tabulated until after the July 6 deadline.”
“So, it’s best to really get that replacement ballot and vote it,” Halloran said.
Naimon also offered practical advice for reducing waits during early voting. He said the busiest time is the last day, especially in the last hours of that final day. He added that Saturday and Sunday are the least busy times.
During early voting, voters can check current wait times on the county website or by texting “EV” and their ZIP code to 77788.
On Election Day, Naimon said the first few hours after polls open are the busiest times.
And even as leaders urge patience through the system, they are also asking for help running it. “We definitely still need more election judges,” Naimon said.
Montgomery County Maryland primary early voting mail-in ballots replacement ballots vendor error 777Vote.org 77788 election judges
So why did they have to reissue 437,000 ballots in the first place? Sounds shady to me.
I don’t get it. “Not counted twice” like people are just out here double voting? If your system can screw up that big, then how do we trust anything. Put it on the website I guess.
Wait so the replacement ballots have a barcode and they magically set the first one aside? That’s what it says but I still don’t believe it fully, like what if someone’s party registration is wrong or the barcode scans wrong. Also 777Vote.org… is that some state thing or just a random site they picked.
“No ballot counted twice” is good, but they still had to replace a ton of mail-in ballots because of a vendor error. I mean that means somebody could’ve gotten the wrong stuff, right? And now voters are supposed to just trust that June 11 to June 18 timeline is safe. I’m gonna be annoyed if it takes forever to figure out which one counts.