We checked what the US elections voting process is like: Some cast ballots electronically, others by mail

Photo collage: Marija Milutinovic

The long-awaited presidential elections in the US will be held on November 5. More than 160 million people are eligible to vote.

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As that time approaches, people's interest in this contest between Republicans and Democrats increases, and the election will be followed by the whole world this year.

A Telegraf portal journalist had the opportunity to visit the Election Department in Clark County in Las Vegas. through a program organized by the FPC, and see how this system works in action.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

In Clark County, Nevada - which includes the city of Las Vegas - a department is responsible for organizing and supervising all elections.

The Clark County Election Department conducts voter registration, maintains voter rolls, establishes polling places, administers early voting, processes absentee ballots and certifies election results.

Essentially, they work to ensure that elections are conducted fairly, accurately and in accordance with the laws and regulations of Nevada state.

Three elections will be held in this district during 2024 - presidential primaries in February, primaries in June and general elections in November. In all three, people will have the opportunity to vote early by mail, or directly on election day.

Clark County Registrar of Voters Lorena Portillo has worked for the Election Department for 25 years, and has served as registar since last year.

"We've worked very hard to get to where we are now. We have more than 1.4 million voters and about 46 staff are employed by our department. This year is very busy, one of the busiest when it comes to elections. We always comply with state and federal laws to ensure that the elections take place as they should," said Portillo.

In the federal state of Nevada, the rule is that only voters who are registered as Democrats or Republicans have the right to vote in the primaries. If a person wants to change the status of their registration, they can do so via email.

All information at the polling stations is written in three languages - English, Spanish and Filipino because of the large number of enthnic minorities living in that state.

Portillo showed the journalists what the process of voting via electronic voting machine looks like.

Voting machines

On election day, it is necessary for a voter to take with them the paper that they received by mail and which is handed in at the place where the vote is cast. If someone received it, but forgot to bring it with them, they have to sign a paper confirming this, in order to avoid someone voting twice.

"The electronic voting system was implemented in 2022, but the system was presented for the first time during the general elections in 2020. This voting method only applies to direct voting on election day," the registrar explained.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

The electronic voting system consists of two machines, the first checking voter data, and if it turns out that everything is in order, the person receives a card with which they proceed to the next machine where they vote.

When the card is inserted into the second machine, it is necessary for the person to select language, and then vote for a candidate. If it is determined again that all the data is correct, the system will immediately register that the person had voted. The card is then removed from the machine and placed in a box and a sticker is taken as confirmation that the person has voted.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

In the video below you can see how the electronic voting system works in Nevada.

After demonstrating to us with her colleagues what the entire voting process looks like, Portillo assured us that this system is impossible to hack.

Voting by mail

In addition to direct voting, the state of Nevada also has a system of early voting by mail. This voting method was first introduced in 2022 when there were about 50,000 voters who wanted to cast their ballots this way. That number has increased nine times by this year and now stands at 450,000.

All voters in this register are sent a ballot by mail no later than 14 days before election day, regardless of whether they requested it.

"The processing of ballots, which arrive by mail, begins 15 days before election day, but votes are not counted until election day," the registrar explained.

If a person decides to vote in this way, it is necessary to fill in the ballot and put it in the envelope received together with the ballot paper. The election department receives the envelopes sent and processes them.

The voter's signature must be on the back of each envelope, which is scanned and verified. If everything is in order with the signature, the ballot is verified, and if a problem is detected, the ballot is set for further verification.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

All ballots that pass verification are sent to the committee that counts the votes. The ballot is then removed and separated from the signed envelope to ensure the secrecy of the vote. They are then checked to ensure that there are no irregularities.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

The ballots next go through a high-speed scanner that registers the votes. If the scanner cannot read a vote, it is sent back for verification.

If it is found that everything is in order with the ballot, the vote is registered, while all ballots are kept in specialized sealed boxes.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

"The sealed boxes are kept for 22 months in accordance with the law," explained Portillo.

A voter can also bring the ballot that they received by mail to a polling station on election day and cast it themselves.

Photo: Marija Milutinovic

The teams that monitor the election process are made up of people from Democratic and Republican parties.

(Telegraf.rs)