Appointment for the Apple Valley Board of Canvassers
Notice Tags
Elections
Notice Type(s)
Notice,
Meeting
Event Start Date & Time
November 28, 2023 03:30 PM
Description/Agenda
APPOINTMENT FOR THE APPLE VALLEY BOARD OF CANVASSERS
111 E Tabernacle St, St George, UT 84770
Tuesday, November 28, 2023 at 3:30 PM
AGENDA
Notice is given that a meeting of the Town Council of the Town of Apple Valley will be held on Tuesday, November 28, 2023, commencing at 3:30 PM or shortly thereafter at 111 E Tabernacle St, St George, UT 84770.
Mayor| Frank Lindhardt |
Council Members | Barratt Nielson | Kevin Sair | Robin Whitmore | Jarry Zaharias |
Dear Mayors and Council Members in Washington County,
Thank you for your service in our area and particularly for working with our office to canvass your municipal elections. The primary election went well, and many of you spent hours in our elections center verifying that ballots were counted correctly. I am happy to report that there were no issues found, and we accurately counted the primary ballots. There are things that need improvement for the November election since we will have many more individuals voting, and many more ballots to process. This letter describes the reason for these changes and how we will allow canvassers to inspect the election process and ballots as well as an additional audit that I will perform.
Need to Ensure the Timely Counting of Ballots
In retrospect, the numerous accommodations made by our office, to provide unlimited time for any board of canvass member to 'hand-count' ballots, as they promised constituents, disrupted the process of counting and curing ballots for the entire election. Counting, curing, and reporting vote totals are essential functions of the County Clerk-Auditor. Canvassers were invited to the election center to inspect all ballots, as allowed by statute, but it was messaged to constituents as a 'hand-count.' This process required numerous hours and numerous County office staff members who should have been performing other election duties.
The impromptu process we set up disrupted the overall election for a full three days. This postponed essential election duties like curing ballots and preparing final election reports. The canvass window is only seven days, and some of the days land on weekends. We cannot lose a full three days of work for the ministerial canvass inspection. Even worse, if canvassers from each municipality requested to count the same proportion of ballots that Hurricane or Apple Valley counted, we would do nothing but conduct canvassing activities-and not get to count or cure ballots. We simply cannot repeat what we did in September.
2023 General Election Procedures
In November, we will use the following procedures for the canvass.
(1) All canvassers, municipal election officials, and municipal attorneys are encouraged to attend the official post-election audit.
(2) Immediately following the state audit, I will perform an additional audit of 1% of the total number of ballots, going above and beyond what is legally required. If feasible, this audit will include reviewing full precincts from the three largest municipalities.
(3) The days of November 28 and 29 will be set aside for canvass inspection appointments for each municipality. The canvassers may inspect any ballots, registers, books, and forms related to its municipal election. Each canvass appointment will last 11/2 hours and will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis using the sign-up sheet that accompanies this letter;
(4) Only board of canvass members, the municipal clerk or election official, municipal attorneys, and representatives from our office may attend the canvass inspections.
(5) No outside supplies, equipment, or recordings will be permitted during the inspections or audits.
(6) Members of the public are welcome to attend the audits, but may not be present during the inspections. Please do not bring spouses, supporters, or other 'watchers' into the election center for canvass inspections. They will need to wait for you in public areas of the building.
I respectfully request you demonstrate respect to my staff any time you are in the election center. Elections are a lot of work, and the increased workload from the new canvassing inspections only heightens the stress my excellent employees bear. With everything that has occurred with elections so far this year, I have exceeded my overtime budget by $19,000. I am hopeful that by following the procedures outlined above we can continue to build public trust in our elections and be conservative with our county resources.
Again, I appreciate all of the time and attention that each municipality has given elections and election integrity. The County has invested time, staff, and money to ensure safe and secure elections. As County Clerk-Auditor, I am confident in our election processes and hope that you are too. I look forward to continuing to provide safe and secure elections now and in the future. It is time to return to normalcy for the sake of the electorate and our Republic.
Sincerely,
Ryan Sullivan
Washington County Clerk-Auditor
CERTIFICATE OF POSTING: I, Jenna Vizcardo, as duly appointed Recorder for the Town of Apple Valley, hereby certify that this Agenda was posted at the Apple Valley Town Hall, the Utah Public Meeting Notice website http://pmn.utah.gov, and the Town Website www.applevalleyut.gov.
THE PUBLIC IS INVITED TO PARTICIPATE IN ALL COMMUNITY EVENTS AND MEETINGS
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, individuals needing special accommodations (including auxiliary communicative aids and services) during this meeting should notify the Town at 435-877-1190 at least three business days in advance.
MINUTES NOT REQUIRED (NO QUORUM PRESENT)
NO AUDIO
Notice of Special Accommodations (ADA)
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, individuals needing special accommodations (including auxiliary communicative aids and services) during this meeting should notify the Town at 435-877-1190 at least three business days in advance.
Notice of Electronic or Telephone Participation
In accordance with state statute, one or more council members may be connected via speakerphone.