Ada County is getting ready for election day on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Officials say they are taking steps to make sure the voting process is secure.
Speaking from the Ada county headquarters on Tuesday, Clerk Trent Tripple said they are expecting a higher turnout than usual.
“All of those numbers are showing us that we're higher than normal compared to 2019, a very similar election, municipal election,” he said.
Tripple attributed those numbers to growth in the Treasure Valley over the last few years and a higher number of registered voters.
“We're expecting about a 30 to 40% turnout for this election. That's around 100,000 to 120,000 voters,” he said.
Elections Director Saul Seyler said they want the public to trust the election process on Election Day.
“We have 13 cameras that are live streamed at all times throughout the warehouse, so any citizen can go on and watch what we're doing as we work through the process,” he said.
Seyler said they wanted to increase security as the ballots traveled to the precincts and back to headquarters. So for the first time this year, they are using locked cages on wheels to transport ballots and equipment to each voting location.
“We have the slots on the top for ballot boxes, which is where the ballot stock is. All of our signage can fit in here. There's actually a location on the back where our voting booths can go. So literally it's a precinct that's self-contained in a cage,” he said.
This way, Seyler added, the voting equipment is secure from the time it leaves the office until it is unlocked to count the ballots on Election Day.
Early voting ends Friday, Nov. 3 and absentee ballots can be dropped off at polling places or the county election building on Benjamin Lane in Boise until 8 p.m. on Election Day.
For more information, check out our November 2023 Election Guide here.
