Burke and crew continue prepping for Nov. 3 election

The Montgomery County Auditor’s Office is continuing to work behind the scenes to prep for the upcoming 2020 general election Nov. 3.

At the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors meeting Sept. 8, the supervisors heard from County Auditor Stephanie Burke, who gave an update on the progress being made. Burke said the county would have the option to use drop boxes, despite earlier guidance to the contrary.

“A couple of weeks ago, auditors and election officials had a training session with the Iowa Secretary of State. During that training, it was said that drop boxes were not allowed for ballot delivery. Since then, it has been decided that county official drop boxes on county-owned property are allowed to accept ballots, as the boxes are safe, secure, monitored, and on county property,” Burke said.

Two pages of rules were issued regarding drop boxes. Among the rules was that only the county auditor and individuals employed by the county auditor can have access to the keys and the combination of the lock.

“I will ask for the keys from the treasurer, recorder, and maintenance coordinator, and they will be locked up. If anyone is expecting something from the drop box, we will of course get them what they need, and the keys will be returned to a normal rotation after that. The rule is not negotiable,” Burke advised.

Supervisor’s Chair Donna Robinson said that despite the change, the drop box is available for all items, and those items will be delivered to the designated offices, and the service will not be interrupted while in use for the dropping off of ballots for early voting. Burke advised the drop box is monitored by a security camera.

Burke also took part in a meeting with county IT director Ryan Ernst, Montgomery County Emergency Management Coordinator Brian Hamman, and Red Oak Fire Chief John Bruce to craft a cyber security incident emergency action plan. The plan has been finalized and emailed to all the necessary departments.

Burke then informed the supervisors that the county was required to make a change to the web domain from dot us to dot gov, The change was a stipulation being made of all county offices in the U.S. Ernst advised the supervisors that the dot us domain would remain in use, and emails sent to that address would be forwarded to the new domain.

On a positive note, Burke said the county would receive additional funding. $14,800 was going to be available through the “Help America Vote Act,” from the Secretary of State.

“We have to utilize the money according to certain guidelines. We’re going to purchase new election equipment to county absentee ballots, as it makes things move more quickly. During the last primary election, the absentee team was here for seven hours, opening and scanning ballots. The new machine will tabulate faster. We’ll also purchase a few other additional items in relation to the absentee ballots, and we’re looking at getting a new security camera to use for monitoring the drop box. We will be issuing some budget amendments in the near future, as we have to spend the money on the equipment before we receive the CARES act funds.”

Burke stressed that if anyone approached the supervisors with election-related questions, for the supervisors to direct them to the auditor’s office, and her office would assist them with any questions.

The Red Oak Express

2012 Commerce Drive
P.O. Box 377
Red Oak, IA 51566
Phone: 712-623-2566 Fax: 712-623-2568

Comment Here