Behind the General Election canvassing process
IMEPRIAL COUNTY — After registered voters cast their ballots by mail or in-person during the General Election on Nov. 8, canvas board members go through each precinct.
“What we are doing today is double checking that work,” said Linsey Dale, county Registrar of Voters.
Dale mentioned that there are 220 poll workers, and they know that some discrepancies will appear.
“We need to find those and that’s what we are doing today to make sure, and if there were a discrepancy, that we catch that and we can identify where it is and what happened there,” Dale said.
Dorothy Torres, a resident of El Centro, has been a volunteer in the elections for about six years, with plans to continue.
“I have learned so much and I love doing it,” Torres said.
“So many people come along and say, there’s a way of cheating and all this stuff,” Torres said. “Believe me there’s not. I have learned there is no way,” she said.
Dale mentioned that if a canvas board member also worked at the poll site and is balancing a precinct, they are assigned a different one.
“We ensure that they don’t get the precinct that they were working,” Dale said.
Torres mentioned that as volunteers at polling sites they try everything they can to make the voter feel comfortable.
“That is what our goal is, to take care of the country,” Torres said.
Dale said canvas board members are dedicated to the election process.
“These individuals are dedicated Americans that love their country and community and want to make sure that the process is done accurately,” Dale said.
She hopes to get more volunteers as they are lacking and have needed to hire to fill the vacancies.
“We understand that it’s a long day on Election Day, but it’s a wonderful opportunity to serve your community too,” Dale said. Dale added that during Election Day they received a notable amount of mail-in ballots, which they are still processing.
“It was close to 7,000 votes by mail ballots that were dropped at polling sites — just at the poll sites,” Dale said.
“In addition to that our drop boxes – we had eight drop boxes – many of them were emptied multiple times during the day and were full,” Dale said of drop boxes in cities such as El Centro, Calexico, and Brawley.
Dale said they are seeing an increase in vote-by-mail ballots after 2020, allowing for more opportunities for voters.