The bipartisan Ad Hoc Committee on Oakland County Election Infrastructure submitted its report and recommendations to the Board of Commissioners at the full board meeting last Thursday, following a thorough review of the ballot shortages that occurred during the primary election on August 7, 2018. The committee was established in response to widespread reports of problems at the polls and charged with investigating, gathering feedback from election officials and voters, and issuing recommendations for improving the infrastructure in place for future elections in Oakland County.
"After conducting an extensive review and analysis of the ballot shortages that occurred on Election Day, we are confident our recommendations, if implemented, would prevent a repeat of the serious problems many voters experienced at the polls on August 7," said co-chair Commissioner Tom J. Berman (R-Keego Harbor).
"This election demonstrated that you cannot take people for granted when they are hungry for change," said co-chair Commissioner Nancy Quarles (D-Southfield). "There is a tremendous level of excitement about the political process this year from young people, women, minorities and many others. This committee listened, learned and is recommending steps to are taken to protect the rights of all voters to cast a ballot."
The committee actively gathered feedback from people involved at all levels of the election process, including the Oakland County clerk, the Oakland County elections director, members of the Board of Canvassers, local municipal clerks, precinct election workers and voters. This information came in the form of surveys, phone interviews, public forums and online voter incident reports.
"This was a very worthwhile look at our elections process," said committee member Commissioner Marcia Gershenson (D-Bloomfield Township). "I learned a lot from this process and am very pleased with the recommendations the committee made. I know our efforts will increase voter confidence in November."
"This committee has been called 'bipartisan' but the issue is truly nonpartisan," said Commissioner Adam Kochenderfer, who also served on the committee. "Every resident has the right to expect well-run elections free from ballot shortages. Our recommendations are aimed at protecting that right and ensuring we never again have ballot shortages in Oakland County."
According to their report (a full version of which can be found at www.oakgov.com) the committee identified numerous reasons for ballot shortages during the August 7, 2018 primary election, including the complexity and challenges of forecasting voter behavior in the 516 precincts in Oakland County, unprecedented voter turnout and shifting turnout geography due to the volatile political climate, the lack of a emergency response plan among election administrators, and human errors like ballot spoilage and miscommunication that exacerbated problems in an already stressed system. Ultimately, the committee determined that approximately 140 precincts experienced ballot shortages and were resupplied, and approximately 75 precincts exhausted their supply of ballots and had to resort to emergency ballot procedures.
In response to these findings, and after integrating the insights of the many individuals who provided information during the review process, the committee laid out a series of recommendations that could help ensure that future elections in Oakland County run effectively and efficiently. The Ad Hoc Committee on Election Infrastructure offered the following recommendations in their report:
- Fund adequate ballot supply
Amend the county budget to authorize sufficient funding for the County Clerk to provide ballot for up to 100% of registered voters
- Work with Local Clerks
Request that the County Clerk to develop a new procedure for allocating ballots that involves working collaboratively with local clerks to determine appropriate ballot orders for each precinct
- Utilize Technology to Develop Better Planning Tools
Request that the Secretary of State provide county elections staff access to absentee voter data to improve election planning capabilities and encourage Elections Division to create an absentee voter tracker program that could integrate the absentee voter data and historical voter data for more accurate turnout forecasting
- Minimize Ballot Spoilage
Provide the $25,000 requested by the County Clerk to launch a voter education effort and urge the State Legislature to consider legislation returning the political party logos to the ballot design
- Plan for Election Day Emergencies
Request that the Elections Division, in partnership with the Oakland County Clerk's Association, host a training session to discuss the creation and implementation of a unified response plan for future ballot shortages
- Improve Communications and Election Day Support Network
Request that the Oakland County Clerk's Association and Elections Division invite the Oakland County chiefs of police and Oakland County Homeland Security Division to discuss opportunities for greater partnership and planning for potential Election Day emergencies
- Explore South Oakland Election Day Operations Center
Evaluate the possibility and value of having a presence close to the southern population centers of the county and supplying this operations center with an emergency ballot printer
- Prevent Election Equipment Failures and Provide Improved Election Day Support
Request that the County Clerk maintain timely, high quality customer service from the voting equipment vendor in advance of and during elections, and that the Secretary of State investigate reports of e-poll book failures during the Oakland County primary election and the failure in some precincts to continue utilizing e-poll books throughout Election Day
- Expand Election Worker Training and Support
Request that Elections Division partner with local clerks to offer ongoing election work training, including more advanced preparedness training for precinct chairs, and that the Board consider creating a grant program to assist local communities in recruiting new precinct election workers
The committee submitted their report for consideration by the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, the Oakland County Clerk, the Secretary of State, the Oakland County Clerk's Association, local clerks and the people of Oakland County. The committee believes the recommendations are fair and balanced.
The full version of the report is available at www.oakgov.com/boc. For more information, contact the committee co-chairs: Commissioner Berman (bermant@oakgov.com) and Commissioner Quarles (quarles@nancyquarles.com). To contact the Board of Commissioners, please call 248-858-0100 or email boc@oakgov.com.
Published: Mon, Oct 01, 2018
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