During department reports at the Caldwell County Fiscal Court meeting Tuesday morning, recently elected County Clerk Jennifer Watson-Hale shared information with magistrates about e-poll books and possible election plans for the upcoming primary.
Hale said the State Board of Elections will pay for the first year’s subscription of the e-poll books, but she added the county will be required to purchase the books.
click to download audioHale added they will be able to see a demonstration of the e-poll books and then the fiscal court can decide on the cost and pairing up with the voting equipment the county already has and what will work best for the county. She said they are required by the state to let make a decision in March.
The second thing Hale discussed was the election process. In the last election, registered voters were allowed to cast ballots at the courthouse except for those in the Fredonia, Donaldson and Bucksnort precincts. She added if they decided to go back to the 13 precincts as in years past, they will need to send out notification letters with a cost of over $3,000.
click to download audioDistrict 4 Magistrate Jeff Simms said convenience was a big deal and from the feedback, he has received from registered voters they may need to look at an alternate location instead of using the courthouse.
click to download audioHale added that there are several places in town that could be utilized with each possibly having some challenges. She noted they also would need to consider ADA accessibility. However, Hale says she feels early voting should continue to be at the courthouse.
click to download audioShe noted if they make any changes to precincts all of the voters will need to be notified.
Simms said this is just another example of Frankfort handing down an unfunded liability to the counties which are what has “everyone up in arms”, with Judge-Executive Kota Young adding he is interested to see what information the State provides to Hale.
