USA06 October, 20263 min read
Clark County Officials Urge Voters To Use Ballot Drop Boxes After 2024 Fire Damage
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Clark County upgraded drop boxes with temperature/text alerts after 2024 thermite fire damage. Officials urge voters to use ballot drop boxes to safeguard counting following attack.
Drop Boxes and Delays
Election officials in Clark County, Washington pushed voters to use ballot drop boxes after about 500 ballots were damaged in 2024 when an assailant set fire to drop boxes with an explosive device containing thermite. Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey told CNN that the county upgraded its drop boxes with technology that sends a text message to officials if the temperature inside the box rises above a certain temperature, if the box receives a forceful blow, or if it is removed from its geo-fenced location. Kimsey said Clark County also purchased upgraded fire suppressant devices and installed surveillance cameras at all of its drop box locations.
Kimsey said, "We think we've taken the appropriate steps to ensure the safety of the ballots in the ballot drop boxes," and he added that the county retrieved ballots on a more frequent schedule than in the past. Hobbs told CNN, "We're really emphasizing to our voters that they use the drop box rather than the mailbox."
California Urges Early Voting
California leaders used their collective platforms to remind eligible voters to check their mailboxes this week and return their ballot as soon as possible, with Governor Gavin Newsom, Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber, and Attorney General Rob Bonta all speaking in the California State Portal.
The California State Portal said Californians who plan to return their ballot by mail should do so at least a week before Election Day given changes to the U.S. Postal Service under the Trump administration.
The California State Portal warned that under the U.S. Postal Service's new process, mail dropped off at post offices and mail collection boxes more than 50 miles from a U.S. Postal Service regional hub is collected the next day instead of the same day, and it said late ballots are not counted.
The California State Portal said Attorney General Rob Bonta secured a U.S. Supreme Court order that protects the ability to vote by mail, and it quoted him saying, "We successfully secured a U.S. Supreme Court order that protects your ability to vote by mail."
The California State Portal also quoted Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber saying, "We are just four weeks from Election Day, and I know some Californians may be wondering whether everything coming out of Washington has changed how they can vote."
Berkeley Drop Boxes and Deadlines
For the November 3 election, the City of Berkeley told voters to vote by mail, drop box, or at vote centers, and it said all registered voters will be sent a ballot and a postage-paid return envelope. The City of Berkeley instructed voters to postmark their ballot well before November 3 or deliver it directly to a vote center or drop box by 8:00 pm that night, and it set an online registration deadline of October 19. The City of Berkeley said the Registrar of Voters picks up ballots from the drop boxes daily, concluding at 8:00 pm on Tuesday, November 3, and it listed seven official, secure drop boxes in Berkeley including the Berkeley Civic Center Building at 2180 Milvia Street and the Claremont Branch Library at 2940 Benvenue Avenue.
The City of Berkeley said vote centers open on either October 24 or October 31 depending on the location, and it specified that two Berkeley vote centers open on October 24 with daily hours 9:00 am to 5:00 pm and extended hours on November 3 from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. The City of Berkeley told voters to sign the back of their return envelope, warning that otherwise, "your vote will not be counted."