COVID Response in Elections: 2020 Drive-Thru Voting Center and Ballot Processing Center

About the Program

Category: County Administration and Management (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

When Thurston County closed its doors to the public on March 16, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear we needed a “plan B” to conduct our Presidential Election. Ensuring access to voter services and safely processing ballots during a public health emergency took creative thinking, planning, and coordination. Washington State is a vote-by-mail state. This means voter services and ballot processing are consolidated at central points in the county.Voter services could not be provided safely in the elections office at the courthouse. The Thurston County election lobby is 70 square feet. With the six-foot distance requirement, we could accommodate 2 people at a time. The public meeting room we would historically use for our voting center was only 2,214 square feet and would not be safe for voters who came to register and vote on election day, get a replacement ballot or use our disability access unit. Our concerns inspired the County Auditor and elections staff to consider different models. To safely provide voter services, the Auditor’s Office reached out to community partners and stood up a Drive-Thru Voting Center at a nearby community college campus.Thurston County’s crowded Ballot Processing Center (BPC) did not allow for physical distancing. So, we also made substantial physical and operational changes to our Ballot Processing Center to protect permanent and temporary staff who’s job was to process vote-by-mail ballots. Employee safety and preventing an outbreak of COVID-19 during an election was the paramount concern as the Auditor’s Office adapted the space and operations at the BPC.