Early voting safeguarding efforts undertaken by election administrators in Georgia, North Carolina, and Florida, in response to the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
In the impacted regions of the three states, which could sway the White House decision, potential responses could include adding extra voting stations, extending the period for early voting, and making it simpler to submit mail-in ballots.
"We're powerless. We're short on water. Our cell service is poor, which is causing a delay in mailing out absentee ballots and in receiving mails," stated W. Travis Doss, Jr., the executive director of the Augusta-Richmond County Board of Elections in Georgia, during an interview with CNN. Doss mentioned that several of their 43 polling locations might be "unable to be used."
"This damage goes beyond flood damage," said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections. "There might be polling stations inaccessible due to damaged roads. There might be polling stations with fallen trees on them."
Postal service has been halted in multiple zip codes in the three states, as per the US Postal Service, introducing fresh hurdles for delivering and receiving mail-in ballots.
"We're working closely with our partners at the USPS," Travis Hart, president of the Florida Supervisors of Elections, told CNN. "Some of their facilities were hit too, some of them completely destroyed."
Elections authorities are confident they will receive the necessary help.
With the state legislature coming back into session, Bell and her team are evaluating different potential legislative requests to make, but Bell expressed doubt about extending the vote-by-mail deadlines by a few days, stating that she is more concerned about "isolated communities" that cannot send or receive mail.
"We've identified several alternatives that could be more advantageous," Bell said, including permitting voters to drop off ballots on Election Day instead of only at early voting sites and Election Day polling stations.
Hart is collaborating with Florida's governor's office to get an executive order to aid the elections office due to the weather crisis, akin to the one the elections offices received during Hurricane Ian in 2022 and Hurricane Michael in 2018.
Hart said his team is requesting consolidating polling stations and opening up voting centers so that people aren't required to vote at their precinct, which could be harmed, closed, or inaccessible. He also intends to ask for extending early voting until Election Day since typically, in Florida, early voting ends on the Sunday before.
In North Carolina, Bell is considering partnering with state emergency management and the North Carolina National Guard to establish temporary polling stations if required.
"During Hurricane Dorian, we actually had voting from a tent erected by the National Guard that made voting possible in Hyde County," Bell said. "We will implement whatever measures essential to ensure that we can conduct voting."
Bell added, "We'll also be looking at whether we go before the board and ask for them to consider merging more polling stations, potentially extending the use of our early voting facilities since we know that those are usually larger, have more parking."
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said in a statement that counties in his state required to move early voting locations would inform voters through Georgia's My Voter Page website and through local radio, television, and social media.
Raffensperger said his office "is working hard to ensure the safety of election workers in affected counties, that their equipment is undamaged and secure, and that their early voting locations will be functional by the time early voting begins."
Availability of poll workers
Another potential issue is the limited number of poll workers available, especially if the workload may increase.
Bell stated that the state board is considering an emergency power to expand the pool of individuals who can become poll workers at a precinct.
Hart concurred, indicating, "Under Florida statute, currently, you have to be registered within that county to be a poll worker. But we would maybe waive that rule so that neighboring county residents, who would like to work in the election, could cross county lines and assist the counties in need."
The integrity of the election should not be a matter of concern, legislators and outside observers assert.
Chris Mann, research director at the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation and Research, stated Tuesday that there is a great deal of "resilience" built into North Carolina's mail-voting system, which should alleviate some of the challenges from Hurricane Helene.
"All of those ballots have tracking... North Carolina uses it to the fullest," Mann said.
Thanks to the tracking system, election officials can invalidate ballots that were already delivered to homes that are now destroyed, Mann said. New ballots can then be issued to voters and sent to their current location.
"Voters merely need to contact their county board of elections, ask them to spoil their current ballot, spoiling means that you're deleting it so that it won't count anymore, and reissue a ballot to their new location," said Paul Cox, general counsel of the North Carolina State Board of Elections.
Bell added that the state's tracking system, BallotTrax, can assist North Carolina voters in determining the location of their ballot and if it was misplaced during transit. She emphasized that the procedures in place ensure that ballots are accurately counted and connected to the appropriate person, and that voters should trust the electoral process.
"Elections people are resilient, just like the residents in the mountains," Bell said.
This story has been updated with additional details.
In light of the potential impact on voting, the White House might need to consider the role of politics in this situation, especially if the affected regions have significant voting power.
The aftermath of the hurricane raises concerns about whether politics will play a role in deciding the necessary responses to ensure fair and accessible elections.
