In the lead-up to the Oct. 6 borough elections, Fairbanks voters are getting a biased and negative perspective on the merits of an initiative that aims to require hand-counting of all borough ballots, while prohibiting electronic voting machines.
This is the claim of Fairbanks Assemblyman Brett Rotermund, who, during an Aug. 20 Assembly meeting ardently opposed a resolution that was supposed to be “of a strictly factual nature” to inform voters on Ballot Prop. 3.
The citizen-led initiative aims to do away with all voting machines, much like what the Mat-Su Borough did in 2022.
Rotermund, the only conservative member of the left-leaning Fairbanks Assembly, took issue with how his colleagues wanted to describe the ballot measure to voters. In particular, he raised concerns about how the informational resolution only points out negatives related to hand counting, while avoiding any positive outcomes.
The resolution claims that hand counting “typically takes longer to determine unofficial election results on election day.” It also warns voters that a machine will not review their ballot for accuracy, but that this will be done by a human official.
“I just think this language makes this sound like it’s a negative and I think it’s going to sway people’s votes.”
Other wording suggests that there may be additional implementation costs to switch to hand counting.
“It sounds negative. It just sounds like we’re trying to talk people out of it,” Rotermund told his fellow assembly members. “It’s portraying a negative to voters. We’re saying this is bad. That’s not neutral.”
The language of the resolution makes no mention of potential cost savings from not having to manage and maintain expensive voting machines. Nor does it refer to the successes which the Mat-Su Borough has seen since switching to hand-counting four years ago.
“I just think this language makes this sound like it’s a negative and I think it’s going to sway people’s votes,” Rotermund added. “I’m sorry, that’s just how this is worded.”
While some minor amendments were made, Rotermund was clearly not satisfied with the final product, and he was the only “no” vote. The resolution passed 6-1, and it appears on the borough’s election page next to the ballot proposition.
ALASKA WATCHMAN DIRECT TO YOUR INBOX
If the measure passes during the Oct. 6 elections, Fairbanks will switch to hand counting beginning with the 2027 election cycle. It would require that all regular ballots be hand-counted at polling places on Election Day in full public view.
Questioned, absentee and special needs ballots would be hand-counted at a central election location, and no electronic tabulation systems would be used to produce or certify official election results.
Another ballot proposition will ask voters whether the Fairbanks Borough should change its elections to align with statewide elections, a move that supporters see as a practical way to increase voter turnout and avoid expensive, stand-alone borough contests. The Mat-Su implemented this scheduling change back in 2019.
TAKING ACTION
— Click here to read Ballot Measure 3, which would require hand counting of all borough ballots.
— Click here to read an opinion piece about Ballot Measure 3, written by sponsor Barbara Haney.
— Click here for more information on early voting and voting registration in the Oct. 6 Fairbanks Borough election.
1 Comment
There are 174 million registered voters in the United States. If you want the results of the November midterms the day after the election, you are very unlikely to get them if each paper ballot is marked and counted by hand.