Ballot counting, voter safety plans in place for Election Day

With just 12 days until Election Day, the Berks County commissioners provided more details about how election officials will be collecting mailed ballots, counting those ballots and ensuring the safety of those who are choosing to head to the polls.

Commissioners gave an overview at their weekly meeting Thursday of a number of election-related protocols and procedures.

They also reported that as of Thursday morning the teamin the election services office has mailed about 79,500 requested ballots and has received back about 35,800. Those returned ballots represent about 19% of the total number of Berks residents who voted in the 2016 presidential election.

“I think you’re going to be proud of Berks County and the way Berks County is handling this election,” said Commissioner Kevin Barnhardt, who serves as chairman of the county election board. “We are doing a rock solid job here. My hat is off to the election workers and poll workers who are making this happen.”

So what do voters need to know right now?

There are two drop boxes for ballots

Voters can deliver their ballots to two boxes in Berks: in the lobby of the Berks County Services Center,

655 Court St. in Reading or at the Berks County Agricultural Center, 1238 County Welfare Road in Bern Township.

The drop boxes are open the following days and hours:

Mondays through Wednesdays: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Thursdays and Fridays: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 24: 8 a.m. to noon.

Election Day: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Officials said both drop boxeswillbe securedbydeputy sheriffs. Workers in the election services department will collect the ballots at the end of each day and seal the boxes when the centers are closed to ensure the ballots remain secure.

Voterswhochoose todrop off their ballots are not allowed to drop off ballots belonging to anyone else — a practice Democrats call community collection and Republicans deem ballot harvesting. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled last month that the practice is illegal.

The election services office is also accepting appointments for early voting for those who have not already applied for a mail-in ballot and would like to cast a ballot in person. That option will be available for voters until next Tuesday.

Most ballotswill be counted by election night

The board said it is optimistic elections officials will be able to report the results ofmost of themailed ballots on election night. They said that tally will be posted online along with the results from those who vote at the polls.

“Our expectation is that we can get most — if not all — counted on that day,” Barnhardt said. “We hope thisprocess is going towork like a well-oiled machine.”

To make that happen the county has rented two conference rooms at theDoubleTreebyHiltonhotel inReading for election workers to open and scan the ballots that arrive by mail.

Barnhardt said the county will havemore than 200 employeesworking around the clock on Election Day in the conference rooms removing ballots from the envelopes.

Those ballots will be transported to the hotel in a locked box truck accompaniedby a deputy sheriff to ensure the process is secure.

Any ballots that have not been opened or scanned by the time the workers leave the hotel will be taken to the commissioners boardroom on the 13th floor of the services center for overnight storage. And all ballots, whichwere postmarked by ElectionDay and received by Nov. 6, will be opened and scanned there.

The commissioners have arranged for Berks Community Television to record the entire ballot counting process toease theminds of votersworried about how those mailed ballots will be handled and counted.