Milford residents have the chance to vote on whether to allow keno lottery games to be played within the city limits, but some have questioned the validity of the election being conducted by mail.
Seward County Clerk and Election Commissioner Sherry Schweitzer said her office has fielded questions about why 1,100 Milford residents have received ballots even though they didn’t request one.
Special elections differ from primary and general elections when it comes to how voters get a ballot. For an all-mail election, voters do not go to a polling place, and they do not have to request an absentee ballot – they get one automatically.
“Every eligible voter in the City of Milford was mailed a ballot,” Schweitzer said. “If you did not get one, call the County Clerk’s Office immediately to see why.”
A voter may not have received a ballot if their registration was not up-to-date or if they recently moved.
Nebraska law allows for special elections – those held at different times from the May and November primary and general election dates – to be conducted completely by mail for a few reasons.
“Mainly cost, convenience and turnout,” Schweitzer said. “Statistics show that turnout greatly increases when all-mail elections occur,” because voters can mark and return their ballots when it’s convenient for them.
Nebraska’s Legislative Research Office notes that every state in the United States allows some form of voting by mail.
“Currently, five states conduct all elections entirely by mail: Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah,” according to Logan Seacrest, research analyst at the LRO in a May 2020 Vote-By-Mail factsheet.
Eleven counties in Nebraska with populations under 10,000 conduct all of their elections by mail instead of at polling places.
Seacrest said evidence from the Nebraska Secretary of State’s office shows voter turnout increases by as much as 20% for elections conducted by mail because it’s more convenient and also allows those who are physically unable to get to a polling place easier access.
Milford’s bond election for a new city hall and police station was conducted by mail in 2018. Schweitzer said it yielded a 50% voter turnout, which is higher than usual.
Seacrest said mailing ballots has no significant effect on voter fraud.
“Mail ballot fraud is rare in part because states have spent years developing systems and processes to prevent theft and forgery of absentee ballots,” he said.
Schweitzer said she and her staff must adhere to certain requirements when conducting an election through the mail to keep it as safe and secure as an election at a polling site.
A resident choosing to vote in an all-mail election must sign the envelope, then return it by mail, in-person to the clerk’s office or in the drop box on the north side of the Seward County Courthouse at 529 Seward Street in Seward.
An envelope that is not signed will not be considered valid.
“We check and make sure your signature is the same that is on your voter registration,” Schweitzer said. “When the signatures are verified, the envelopes are opened so we cannot see how someone voted.”
The envelopes and ballots are placed in different stacks, so there is no way to know which ballot came out of which envelope.
“You can be assured your vote is kept confidential and only you, the voter, will know how you voted,” she said. “Integrity is of utmost importance to my office.”
Ballots must be returned to the clerk’s office by 5 p.m. on May 9 in order to be counted.
Voters with questions may call the clerk’s office at (402) 643-2883.
