Views from the Linn County Auditor

54% of my property taxes will go to Linn Mar Community School District

That’s right…$3,287.85 of my $6,076.00 property tax bill for fiscal year 2007/2008 will go to Linn-Mar.  The City of Robins will get 26% of my property taxes, Linn County will get 17%, Kirkwood Community College will get 2%, and the County Assessor and Agricultural Extension office will split the remaining 1%.  

 

The seven citizens on the Linn-Mar school board determined and approved the tax rate for the school district.  Of course, school board members perform many other duties besides setting tax rates, but most of those duties would be impossible to perform without the funds raised through property taxes.

 

How many citizens will be running for school boards on the September 11^th ballot?  What will be their qualifications?  Will there be competition for the positions?  Or will it be democracy by default?  Will there be a debate or forum to hear their vision for our schools?

 

Using Linn-Mar as an example, in the 2000, 2001, and 2003 elections, 2 candidates ran for 2 positions.  In the 2002 and 2005 elections, 3 candidates ran for 3 positions.  In 2004, 3 candidates ran for 2 positions and in 2006, 4 candidates ran for 2 positions.  How many will run in 2007?      

 

If you intend to run for school board, you must file your nomination papers with the secretary of your school board no later than August 2^nd.  Go to http://www.linncounty.org/content.asp?Page_Id=651&Dept_Id=6 to view the school board terms expiring in 2007.  If you need information, please contact your local school board secretary or call my office at 892-5300.

 

P.S.  I know I could live in a mobile home like I did 21 years ago and reduce my property tax burden.  I choose to live where I live and pay the taxes I pay; however, I would like to see tax rates, tax policy, and school funding debated by school board candidates prior to their election.  This debate will likely only occur when we have competition for school board positions.  Will you run?  Will you encourage someone to run?  --Joel @ 1:01pm

Running a polling place - a little more complicated than you might think

Election Services spends lots of time preparing for an election.  A big chunk of time is spent recruiting and retaining precinct election officials (PEOs) ... and then training them.  We are always trying to recruit new PEOs because of normal attrition and we need to have a number of PEOs on standby in case of absences on election day.  It's a challenging job to manage the 300-600 temporary workers (PEOs) needed for a county-wide election.  I applaud Sue Wold, Deputy Commissioner of Elections, and her staff for consistently doing a great job!

The information below was provided to the Chair of each precinct polling place on the Friday before the recent election.  If you can follow instructions and have an interest in becoming a PEO, please contact Elections Services at 892-5300 or go to http://www.linncounty.org/content.asp?Page_Id=567&Dept_Id=6 --Joel @ 4:16pm.

There are NO new laws regarding voting at the polls that take effect this year!!

 

POLL HOURS are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. All precinct election officials shall report 1 hour before opening time to help set up the precinct for voters.

 

I           Election Morning Duties - 2 officials

1) Set-up the Accu-Vote OS and the TSX first thing in the morning, using the OPEN side of the laminated instruction card found in the supplies.

2) Complete the Tally Book and Tally Envelope and have all officials/chair take the Oath of Office and sign the Accu-Vote tape.

3) Arrange tables and chairs in an orderly fashion.

4) Post large VOTER INFORMATION sign and 4 SAMPLE BALLOTS using the           Election Specific sign in green bag.  You will need to mark your own “Sample”s (not VOID).  Post signs in a conspicuous place.

            5) Officials should vote to make sure the Accu-Vote is ready to accept ballots.

            6) Chairperson should assign duties to officials and rotate duties during the day.

            7) Decide who will be delivering the TSX card with results to the Elections Office.

8) Check the location of your modem jack, especially if you are working in a “new-to-you” precinct.  Call in the morning if you have any questions or problems.

9)  Call the office for any additional absentee voters.

 

II           Ballots

The ballot is one-sided and one race is on the ballot.  Voters may choose 1 of 3 options on how they wish their county supervisors to be elected.

ü      Plan One – At-Large: Elect supervisors at large.  This is how supervisors are now elected. 

ü      Plan Two – At-Large/District: Elected at large by district.  Supervisors have to live in the districts they represent, but everyone would vote on them.

ü      Plan Three – District/District: Elect supervisors by district, with only district residents voting for the supervisor that represents that district.  Supervisors would live in the district they represent.

You may not discuss any of the plans on the ballot with a voter or your co-workers.  The only information you may give a voter is how to mark their ballot so the machine will read it.  Instructions are also at the top of the paper ballot and the 1^st screen on the TSX.

 

III          Election Register Duties

1)  Each voter should print their name & address on the voter roster.  Required for all elections.

2)  Ask for voter’s name & current address. 

a) If all is correct, voter signs above their printed name in the election register. b) Initial in the left-hand column.

c) Initial & issue ballot & pen to the voter if they vote paper, when a voting booth is available.  Secrecy folders should be provided for the voter.

d) Give the voter the orange TSX card if they vote electronic and send them to the TSX machine.

3)  If a voter’s name cannot be found in the election register, they will need further assistance, probably from the Chairperson.

4)     Process address changes according to instructions in the purple bag.  Be sure the voter’s address is in your precinct before you call the office.  Call to verify a voter’s eligibility before issuing a ballot. If you can not get verification, they must vote the provisional ballot.  Use the Precinct Map for verification.

5)     Absentee voter marked in register cannot vote at the polls unless they surrender the absentee ballot and vote at the precinct.

6)     Provisional voters’ ballots do not go into the voting machine, but are placed and sealed in the envelope.

7)     At the end of the day, count the number of signatures in the election register and the number of change of addresses.  Write this number on the “Ballot Record and Receipt” form.

 

IV         Voting Machines

1)     Call the Elections office (892-5300) at 11:00 and 3:00 with the # of voters.

2)     Ballots rejected by the OS unit should first be turned over and reinserted.  If they are rejected again, look at the message on the Accu-Vote LCD.  Never look at the voter’s ballot.  If the problem cannot be detected, void the ballot and issue the voter a new one.

3)     Call the office if you have any problems that you cannot resolve yourself.  Open the auxiliary compartment if needed to secure the voted ballots until a technician comes out.

V         Closing the Polls
            TSX (Touch Screen)

1)     Close down the Accu-Vote TSX, using the CLOSE side of the instruction card.

2)     Make sure all election officials sign the results tape.

3)     Tear off the results tape and call the results in to the elections office.

4)     Place the results tape in the small Totals Envelope in the Tally Book.

5)     Remove the memory card from the TSX and place it in the memory card envelope, which is found in the red/white/blue bag.  If you are NOT returning the TSX memory card to the office, you do not have to remove the card.

6)     Complete the front of memory card envelope and make sure all election officials sign the envelope

7)     In Cedar Rapids precincts: The person designated to bring the memory card envelope to the Elections Office should make sure that the OS results have been received by the office before leaving.

 

            OS (Optical Scan)

Have the gray telephone cord out and ready to plug in or hook it up before the polls close, if possible.  When connecting the gray telephone cord to the machine and the wall, make sure it’s tight and you hear a click.

1)     Close down the Accu-Vote OS, using the CLOSE side of the instruction card.

2)     Immediately send results by modem.  Call 892-5300 to verify that your upload came through okay.  When you call to verify, you will be asked to give your TSX results over the phone also.  Please have the results tape with you when you call.

3)     If you do not upload, turn the unit off for 5 seconds and turn back on and try again.

4)     If you can not get the OS unit to upload the results, call the office or pull the memory card and send it with the person assigned to return the TSX card.

 

VI         Post Election Duties- after election results are reported

1)     Remove all ballots from the ballot box and place them in the black transfer case. Remember to pull the cherry colored Ender Card and return it to the Accu-Vote case.

2)     P L E A S E -- Make sure all the change of address forms are in the registration changes envelope and place the envelope in the election register book.

3)     Make sure any Special Voter’s Envelopes used are placed in the ORANGE bag.  Put your precinct # on the front and indicate the number of special voters, if any.  The orange bag should be handed to the election office personnel when returning supplies.

4)     Complete the Ballot Record and Receipt Form. The number of votes cast on both machines should add up to the total election register signatures and address changes processed.

5)     Complete the claim form and use the “Request for Election Case Supplies” form if additional supplies are needed for the next election.

6)     Be sure the Accu-Vote is turned off.  Check the red switch on the back of the machine.

7)     Take down all signs and return supplies to case or designated location.

 

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

Reporting election results to office after the polls close:

-- 892-5300 --

ü      ALL precincts will upload the OS results via the phone line.

 

ü      Cedar Rapids Precincts

1) Send 1 official to the Elections Office to bring the memory card from the TSX machine in the envelope provided in the red/white/blue bag.
2) Have the TSX results tape ready when you call to verify that the OS results were received, report the TSX results at that time.  If we didn’t receive the OS results, we can take those over the phone also.

 

ü      All County and Marion Precincts

1)  Phone in the TSX election results to the Elections Office after the TSX machine is closed down.

2)  Have the TSX results tape ready when you call to verify that the OS results were received and report the TSX results at that time.  If we didn’t receive the OS results, we will take those over the phone also.

GENERAL INFORMATION

 

• The paper ballots may now be marked with any pen.
• Please make no comments to voters or coworkers relating to the election. Remember – you are representing our office. 

• CHAIRPERSONS: Return machines and supplies no later than 12:00 noon on Wednesday at the Elections Depot.
• Transmitting the results: If you receive a busy signal, turn the unit off, and wait 1-2 minutes – then try uploading again.  You will know you have uploaded when your LCD screen says “Results Sent Okay – Turn Unit Off”.

Unofficial election night results for the next election

The next election in Linn County is scheduled for September 11th - the annual school elections  The link below will be used to display the election results as they are uploaded into our tabulating machine and onto the web site.  You might want to try it out now and save the link for election night. 

 

Live Election Results – Linn County, Iowa

 

Go to the following web address:  http://elections.linncounty.org/

 

When the Open Result Set window appears, click on Refresh.  This will bring up a choice of result sets.  Highlight your choice and click on OK.

 

Scroll through the results by clicking the NEXT or NEXT-AUTO buttons.

 

When results start coming in, you will see a pie chart displayed to the right of each race.  --Joel @ 4:52pm

Day's end for my first election

It’s 11:15pm and the office is empty.  Everyone (I think) has left and, hopefully, arrived safe at home or wherever.  This has been a great first election for me.  The staff acted professionally and calmly.  Problems were addressed in a timely manner.  The overall stress level was low … or least unapparent to me.  I stayed out of the way and let everyone do their jobs and they performed fabulously.  I visited 9 polling places and met several precinct election officials (PEOs).  Our county and country are forever indebted to those PEOs for the time they devote and the service they provide to ensure we have the option to participate in our democracy.  Today, we made a decision to peacefully change our county government.  Democracy worked - whether or not you liked the outcome - it worked.  Good night - sleep tight!  --Joel @ 11:34pm

3pm voter statistics

Here's the statistics from the 3pm precinct reports.  Using the 2/13/2007 election as a comparison, today's voter turnout in the CR precincts did not exceed the 3pm turnout reported on 2/13/2007.  Two Marion precincts have exceeded the 2/13/2007 turnout and 9 non-CR precincts have exceeded the 2/13/2007 turnout.  Compared to 2/13/2007, overall voter turnout is down by more than 2%.  --Joel @ 4:27pm

	2/13/07	CURRENT		2/13/07	CURRENT
CR PCTS	11:00	11:00		3:00	3:00
01-GWAEA	31	38		61	45
02-FOUR OAKS	46	33		87	59
03-HOPE LUTH	88	74		173	124
04-CZECH MUSEUM	55	41		98	85
05-1ST LUTHERAN	3	2		13	7
06-PUBLIC LIBRARY	18	18		43	31
07-COUNTY AOB	49	25		95	51
08-NEW CREATION	48	26		97	67
09-VAN BUREN	105	77		193	140
10-MOOSE LODGE	97	61		173	103
11-CLEVELAND	99	98		230	170
12-COOLIDGE	195	93		340	173
13-GLORIA DEI	83	61		169	121
14-TRUMAN	97	65		182	130
15-HOOVER	71	64		161	124
16-MADISON	95	61		199	138
17-TAFT	107	60		192	108
18-ST JAMES	104	60		196	118
19-TIME CHK	56	49		107	78
20-HARRISON	78	80		158	128
21- DAY CARE	61	40		126	83
22- TAYLOR	50	40		95	68
23-OAKLAND CHUR	204	126		415	234
24- PIERCE	151	100		305	219
25-WRIGHT	105	83		227	144
26-ARTHUR	103	87		192	162
27-HARDING	76	65		193	125
28-KTOS	59	55		114	107
29-PEACE CH	83	68		147	127
30-KING OF KINGS	144	89		264	158
31NOELRIDGE CHR	141	81		278	144
32-NIXON	57	46		127	72
33-NEW COVENANT	75	38		151	86
34-OPTIONS OF LC	40	27		62	47
35-JOHNSON	58	34		90	75
36-POLK	32	27		58	50
37-ISAAC NEWTON	43	26		97	58
38-FAITH UNITED CH	52	44		95	65
39-FRANKLIN	72	60		174	143
40-WASHINGTON HS	99	84		189	155
41-BETHANY	170	186		345	273
42-GRANT WOOD EL	109	60		225	153
43-ST STEPHEN'S	100	81		197	149
44-MONROE SCH	91	78		194	136
45-ERSKINE SCH	167	143		313	249
46-COMM OF CHRIST	74	58		143	100
47-GIBSON SCH	60	31		125	50
CR TOTAL	4001	2943		7908	5432
82,251	4.74%	3.58%		9.37%	6.60%
	2/13/2007	CURRENT		2/13/2007	CURRENT
MARION PCTS	11:00	11:00		3:00	3:00
MR 1-1- LIBRARY	45	41		102	87
MR 1-2-HOME SCH	62	73		142	129
MR 1-3-KTOS	46	32		74	56
MR 2-1-1st BAPTIST	82	73		194	166
MR 2-2-WILKINS	141	108		251	195
MR 2-3-SQ CRK BAP	102	101		180	192
MR 3-1-FR MARION	72	97		154	168
MR 3-2-MR ADMIN	96	92		158	150
MR 3-3- FIRE ST 2	28	36		55	53
MR 4-1-CHRISTIAN CH	150	105		261	203
MR 4-2-FAITH LUTH	116	93		214	140
MR 4-3-CHRIST COMM	72	47		153	90
MR TOTAL	1012	898		1938	1629
21,668	4.66%	4.14%		8.93%	7.52%
BERTRAM- METH CH	120	89		201	179
BOULDER-ST JOES	26	32		54	61
BROWN-SV LIBRARY	76	83		168	160
BUFFALO-BOY SCOUT	14	34		43	57
CENTRAL CITY-	52	81		108	160
CLINTON-	44	41		78	65
COLLEGE-PRAIRIE	46	34		79	66
FAIRFAX-LIBRARY	112	113		223	189
FAYETTE-COMM CTR	32	27		73	53
GRANT-FIRE STATION	61	50		106	85
HW 1-COMM CTR	79	55		156	90
HW 2-HOPE CHR	127	96		244	168
JACKSON-Coggon sch	60	84		120	124
LINN-SV CITY HALL	17	28		48	50
LINN-MAR-KNIGHTS	99	148		217	250
LISBON-CITY HALL	100	85		204	143
MAINE-CIVIC CTR	25	42		50	63
MONROE 1-BLR RDG	105	82		192	163
MONROE 2-Chr/Christ	76	75		155	136
MVN- CITY HALL	85	43		162	84
MVS- ST JOHN	87	52		184	99
OTTER CREEK-FIRE	80	50		161	189
PUTNAM-LIBRARY	66	49		138	97
ROBINS-COMM CTR	120	63		235	139
SPRING GRV-NL HIGH	22	30		43	49
SQUAW CRK-GRACE	36	33		75	73
WASHINGTON-CP CH	121	105		277	183
TOTAL	1888	1704		3794	3175
33,454	5.60%	5.09%		11.26%	9.49%
	2/13/2007	Current		2/13/2007	Current
GRAND TOTAL	6901	5545		13640	10236
137,373	4.94%	4.04%		9.76%	7.45%
SILO 2007
Total voters
Total Registered
Turnout 2/13/2007

 

11am voter turnout statistics (corrected)

This table compares today's voter turnout as of 11am with the voter turnout for the special election held on 2/13/07 (SILO and Auditor election).  When you add the turnout in the City of Marion (898) with the non-CR precincts (1673), you arrive at 2571.  The total for the CR precincts equals 2857.  I'm not suggesting there's any correlation between the groups, I'm just pointing out the CR vs non-CR voter turnout is within 286 votes.  --Joel @ 11:48am

Correction:  Thanks goes to Eric Page @ KGAN for advising me the 11am Grand Total for 2/13/2007 was incorrect.  Thanks Eric!  The total should have been 6901 versus 3901.  I've updated the table and reposted.  --Joel @ 1:20pm

	2/13/07	CURRENT		2/13/07	CURRENT
CR PCTS	11:00	11:00		3:00	3:00
01-GWAEA	31	38		61
02-FOUR OAKS	46	33		87
03-HOPE LUTH	88	74		173
04-CZECH MUSEUM	55	41		98
05-1ST LUTHERAN	3	2		13
06-PUBLIC LIBRARY	18	18		43
07-COUNTY AOB	49	25		95
08-NEW CREATION	48	26		97
09-VAN BUREN	105	77		193
10-MOOSE LODGE	97	61		173
11-CLEVELAND	99	98		230
12-COOLIDGE	195	93		340
13-GLORIA DEI	83	61		169
14-TRUMAN	97	65		182
15-HOOVER	71	64		161
16-MADISON	95	61		199
17-TAFT	107	60		192
18-ST JAMES	104	60		196
19-TIME CHK	56	49		107
20-HARRISON	78	80		158
21- DAY CARE	61	40		126
22- TAYLOR	50	40		95
23-OAKLAND CHUR	204	126		415
24- PIERCE	151	100		305
25-WRIGHT	105	83		227
26-ARTHUR	103	87		192
27-HARDING	76	65		193
28-KTOS	59	55		114
29-PEACE CH	83	68		147
30-KING OF KINGS	144	89		264
31NOELRIDGE CHR	141	81		278
32-NIXON	57	46		127
33-NEW COVENANT	75	38		151
34-OPTIONS OF LC	40	27		62
35-JOHNSON	58	34		90
36-POLK	32	27		58
37-ISAAC NEWTON	43	26		97
38-FAITH UNITED CH	52	44		95
39-FRANKLIN	72	60		174
40-WASHINGTON HS	99	84		189
41-BETHANY	170	100		345
42-GRANT WOOD EL	109	60		225
43-ST STEPHEN'S	100	81		197
44-MONROE SCH	91	78		194
45-ERSKINE SCH	167	143		313
46-COMM OF CHRIST	74	58		143
47-GIBSON SCH	60	31		125
CR TOTAL	4001	2857		7908	0
82,251	4.74%	3.47%		9.37%	0.00%
	2/13/07	CURRENT		2/13/07	CURRENT
MARION PCTS	11:00	11:00		3:00	3:00
MR 1-1- LIBRARY	45	41		102
MR 1-2-HOME SCH	62	73		142
MR 1-3-KTOS	46	32		74
MR 2-1-1st BAPTIST	82	73		194
MR 2-2-WILKINS	141	108		251
MR 2-3-SQ CRK BAP	102	101		180
MR 3-1-FR MARION	72	97		154
MR 3-2-MR ADMIN	96	92		158
MR 3-3- FIRE ST 2	28	36		55
MR 4-1-CHRISTIAN CH	150	105		261
MR 4-2-FAITH LUTH	116	93		214
MR 4-3-CHRIST COMM	72	47		153
MR TOTAL	1012	898		1938	0
21,668	4.66%	4.14%		8.93%	0.00%
BERTRAM- METH CH	120	89		201
BOULDER-ST JOES	26	32		54
BROWN-SV LIBRARY	76	83		168
BUFFALO-BOY SCOUT	14	34		43
CENTRAL CITY-	52	50		108
CLINTON-	44	41		78
COLLEGE-PRAIRIE	46	34		79
FAIRFAX-LIBRARY	112	113		223
FAYETTE-COMM CTR	32	27		73
GRANT-FIRE STATION	61	50		106
HW 1-COMM CTR	79	55		156
HW 2-HOPE CHR	127	96		244
JACKSON-Coggon sch	60	84		120
LINN-SV CITY HALL	17	28		48
LINN-MAR-KNIGHTS	99	148		217
LISBON-CITY HALL	100	85		204
MAINE-CIVIC CTR	25	42		50
MONROE 1-BLR RDG	105	82		192
MONROE 2-Chr/Christ	76	75		155
MVN- CITY HALL	85	43		162
MVS- ST JOHN	87	52		184
OTTER CREEK-FIRE	80	50		161
PUTNAM-LIBRARY	66	49		138
ROBINS-COMM CTR	120	63		235
SPRING GRV-NL HIGH	22	30		43
SQUAW CRK-GRACE	36	33		75
WASHINGTON-CP CH	121	105		277
TOTAL	1888	1673		3794	0
33,454	5.60%	5.00%		11.26%	0.00%
	2/13/2007	Current		2/13/2007	Current
GRAND TOTAL	6901	5428		13640	0
137,373	4.94%	3.95%		9.76%	0.00%
SILO 2007
Total voters	29,800
Total Registered	139,739
Turnout 2/13/07	21.33%

Calm in the office

Arrived in the office about 7:55am.  Checked in with Sue Wold, Deputy Commission of Elections.  She reported that all of the polls opened at 7am as required.  Several of the office staff did (or were doing) the same routine I had been doing, i.e., visiting polling places on the way into the office.  Those in the office were taking calls from precinct officials (or making calls to them) to confirm the machines were operating - the workers showed up - the buildings were open.  Returned a call to a voter who wanted some clarification on the Plans before he went to vote.  Good for him!  He took the time to ask questions before he voted.  Had a phone interview with Jeff Tecklenburg of the Gazette.  Everyone in the office is calm.  Looks like a "normal" day.  It's 9:50am - I'm leaving to visit some more polling places.  --Joel

A photo album of my polling place visits before noon

I visited 8 polling places before lunch.  I found enthusiastic precinct election officials ready and waiting to serve you and other voters.

Check out the photo album here

Making the rounds on election day

I arrived at the Robins precinct at 5:55am. The chairperson and her husband (a volunteer) were already in City Hall setting up. Drove over to Pierce Elementary School (CR-24) to deliver the absentee voters list, i.e., those voters who voted absentee since we printed the voter roster. All the workers were busy setting up. They had the doors open, which probably meant the air conditioning (if the school had it) was turned off. The high today is suppose to be 83F. Some of the polling places are going to be warm this afternoon. Next stop was Oakland Church of the Nazarene (CR-23). Provided the chair with the absentee voters list. Watched them setup the touch screen machine and confirm the tape was zeroed out before the election started. Picked up some donuts at HyVee. Afterall, I had all of the office staff report to work at 6am - someone is probably hungry. I'll be ready for a donut when I get to the office. Wrote this blog entry while sitting in my car in HyVee's parking lot. --Joel @ 7:02am

From 642 to 827 on election eve

Today was certainly the busiest at the counter for absentee ballots.  Voters going out of town on Tuesday or leaving today for the remainder of the week stopped by to vote.  Here's the results:

• 521 absentee ballots at the counter
• 295 absentee ballots returned by mail
• 11 military absentee ballots received

Total = 827

We have 36 regular absentee ballots and 42 military absentee ballots that have NOT been received.  --Joel @ 6:20pm

Testing out new technology for future elections

One of my campaign themes was to use “technologies that strengthen the public’s confidence in elections”.  I had heard that Sprint is offering high speed broadband internet services over their local network so I picked up one of their Aircards after lunch.  As I drive around visiting polls tomorrow, I’m going to test out the internet connection to the online voters database utilized by my staff.  I want to determine the feasibility of deploying laptops to the polling places to allow the precinct officials the ability to verify voter registrations at the polling place versus having to call the Auditor’s office.  This technology could prove to be a big help when we go to election day voter registration in January 2008.  –Joel @ 5:45pm

Continuing to get the word out

At 12:15pm, today, I did a live interview at KGAN-TV’s studio in Cedar Rapids (see photo).  I answered some basic questions on the plans, i.e., Plan One, Two, and Three, and talked about voter turn out.  Later, I did an taped interview outside the studio with similar questions, but with time to give in-depth answers to some questions.  If these interviews excite one more voter to study the issues and vote, then it was worth it.

10am briefing the day before the election

I called a meeting at 10am in the Auditor’s Office to review the plans for election day.  In order to keep providing services to the public, i.e., those that walk-up to the counter, we hold staff meetings in the GIS/Mapping area.  Here, Sue Wold, Deputy Commission of Elections, gives an overview on her expectations of the staff on election day (see photo).  Since this is my first election and I’m the only new person in the office, my role is to oversee the election, make myself available to the news media, assist where possible … and stay out of the way of this highly trained and competent staff.  My intention is to visit as many polling places as possible on election day.  –Joel @ 3:10pm

642 out of 137,297

Today, the counter was busy with absentee voters - the most of any day thus far.  As of 7:20pm, 642 absentee ballots have been received.   We're awaiting the return of 103 absentee ballots, i.e., we mailed out 330, but only 227 have been returned. 

Hopefully, everyone who requested an absentee ballot will get them mailed back to us.  They must be postmarked no later than July 23rd or hand delivered to the Auditor's office on election day.  If you show up at your precinct on election day with an unused absentee ballot, you can surrender that absentee ballot and receive another ballot that can be used at the precinct.

We have 137,297 registered voters in Linn County.  I'm predicting a 9-10% turnout, which would be about equal to the number of electors who signed the petition ordering this election.  What's your prediction?

Here's some voter demographics  --Joel @ 7:55pm

Linn County Voter Registration
Demographics - 07/19/07
Gender	Age	# Registered	% Registered
Male	18-35	20,876	15%
Female	18-35	23,042	17%
Male	36-55	25,001	18%
Female	36-55	26,663	19%
Male	56+	18,683	14%
Female	56+	23,032	17%
Totals		137,297	100%

Election Day Schools of Instruction

Sue Wold, Deputy Commissioner of Elections, reviews election day instructions with precinct election officials. This is the first of three schools held today.

Today, we’re hosting three schools of instruction for the election.

Each of the chair persons for the 86 precincts (or their representative) attends a school to receive their final instructions for the election.

Wold reviews touch screen machines with precinct workers.

The schools last about an hour.

The first was at 10am (see photo) and the second at 2pm (see photo).  The final one is scheduled for 5:30pm.  --Joel @ 3:34pm

Let the interviews begin

Scott Westerberg, a reporter with KWWL-TV, interviews me about the election. Barring any breaking stories, it may appear on the5 p.m. newscast.

When I was elected to this position, I don’t think I realized just how often I’d be interviewed on camera, on the radio, and by the newspapers.

Over lunch I had my first on camera interview related to this election (see photo).

I have another scheduled for Monday, July 23^rd, over the noon hour.  --Joel @ 3:48pm

Trying something new on election day

Hi!  This is Joel Miller, Linn County Auditor & Commissioner of Elections.

I thought I’d try something new for the upcoming July 24^th election - blogging.

I have to confess, I’ve avoided blogging in the past – I’ve read blogs – just not participated in them.

When I mentioned I was thinking about doing a blog on election day, one of my fellow county auditors advised I would not have the time.

He may be right.

In any case, I’m starting out with good intentions in hopes of having the time to update the blog and reply to posts.

I’m hoping that by sharing information with you on the blog, you won’t have to call the office for the same information – which should free up the phones for staff to answer individual voter questions or to provide support for the precinct election officials.

I also plan to post voter turnout statistics at around 11am and 3pm on election day.

This is the first election I will oversee as Auditor.  I’m excited to see how the day goes.

I hope this blog turns out to be a positive experience for you, me, and democracy. --Joel @ 4:55pm