One Pennsylvania county is not going to use drop bins for mail-in ballots on this 12 months’s elections.
County election supervisor Romilda Crocamo mentioned the 4 bins used prior to now is not going to be used this 12 months, in accordance with the Times-Leader.
“Whereas I acknowledge that drop bins can present different means for voters to forged their ballots, I need to prioritize the protection and safety of our group within the present political local weather,” Crocamo mentioned.
Crocamo mentioned notices about safety from the Pennsylvania Division of State had been one main cause for the choice.
Visits to the drop field websites strengthened her issues, she mentioned.
In a single location, she mentioned, “the drop field is located in a vestibule with an outer door that continues to be open 24 hours a day. Moreover, there isn’t a personnel stationed close by to watch the second entry door that requires a passcode,” Crocamo mentioned.
“This lack of oversight raises vital issues in regards to the potential for unauthorized entry and misuse,” she mentioned.
At one other web site, she mentioned, the situation of the drop box left her “notably involved in regards to the potential for unlawful actions, reminiscent of people depositing a number of ballots.”
“Though video surveillance might look like an answer, it’s not a foolproof technique of guaranteeing compliance with voting legal guidelines,” Crocamo mentioned.
The opposite two websites, she mentioned, additionally pose safety dangers for the bins.
Crocamo mentioned voters can convey their ballots to the depend’s election bureau.
Crocamo additionally mentioned she was involved in regards to the present drop field setup “exposing the county to vital monetary danger within the occasion of any incidents.”
County Council Chairman John Lombardo backed the choice.
“These bins pose various issues, each associated to security and the potential for fraud,” he mentioned.
Denise Williams, who chairs the county board of elections and helps the idea of drop boxes, mentioned she helps eliminating them, in accordance with WFMZ-TV.
“I concur with the administration’s place,” Williams mentioned. “In mild of the safety issues … I perceive the problem, for the protection of everybody.”
At the least one voter additionally agreed.
“It’s a waste of assets; now we have 186 precincts together with mail-in ballots, which the postal service goes to be overladen with, to have the drop bins in place; there actually isn’t a goal for them,” Ronald Knapp of Nanticoke mentioned, in accordance with WNEP-TV.
This text appeared initially on The Western Journal.