Addresses on applications in question

A total of 92 absentee ballots have raised concerns with the Lawrence County Board of Elections, less than three weeks before the November election.

Recently employees at the board of elections noticed a number of applications for absentee ballots were going to one of two post office box numbers, one box located in Proctorville and the second in Ironton.

Voters are allowed to have their absentee ballots sent to an address other than their home location.

When the workers began noticing the same post office boxes appearing over and over, they began to make random calls to confirm with the applicant that they did want the ballots sent to the second address, according to Cathy Overbeck, elections board director. The name on every fifth application was called.

“It was a random spot check,” she said. “On most of them, the phones were disconnected. We really didn’t get a hold of very many.”

Those they did get in touch with said they wanted the ballots sent to their home address.

“There were several,” Overbeck said.

It used to be the only way registered voters could cast ballots if they knew they were unable to get to the polls was by an absentee form. However, nowadays the absentee ballot has become a convenient way to vote, even if the voter could just as easily get to the polls on election day. Now it is simply a preference.

Even so there are still some procedural hoops to jump through to get to vote absentee. There is an application that has to be filled out listing the voter’s name, legal address and phone number. However, also on the application is the blank allowing the voter to have the ballot sent to another address.

In all 92 ballot applications that second address section was filled out, directing the absentee ballots to one of those two post office boxes, instead of to the voter’s home address.

Taking applications from the elections board office to distribute to voters happens all the time. The reasons can vary from wanting to help someone out to getting erstwhile voters to the polls.

“They take blanks out here,” Eric Bradshaw, deputy director, said. “If I would request it in care of another person, I am entitled to do it. They are going to help you with it by choice. It is a totally legitimate system.”

However to protect the purity of the vote there are checks and balances in place to mitigate possible fraud, Bradshaw said.

The ballot application must bear the signature of the voter. Before an absentee ballot is mailed out, that signature is compared with the signature on the voter registration card, Bradshaw said. They must look identical before the absentee ballot will be sent.

Now the elections board is gearing up for a possible challenge to any or all of those absentee ballots.

“I anticipate there will be a challenge of the ballots,” Overbeck said. “Any election official can challenge. They write out a challenge, which ones and the reason they are challenging.”

If there is a challenge, the four-member board of elections must hold a hearing where all parties must appear. The hearing must be held before the official canvas, which comes after election night.

“We want to make sure every voter has a vote,” Overbeck said.