From Eric Olsen, Director of Elections, Prince William County Office of Elections:
Early Voting expands to all six locations across Prince William County starting on Sunday, October 13. Prince William County has the most weekend voting options and all satellite voting locations are open longer than any county in Virginia. Alternatively, you can apply for a mail ballot until October 25 at 5 pm. If you miss these options, you can still cast your ballot on Election Day on Tuesday, November 5 at your assigned polling place. Go to pwcvotes.org for locations, hours, and more.
Beyond knowing how and where to vote, we have found that some voters have concerns rooted in speculation, conspiracies, and misinformation. The election process is very secure with multiple redundancies and many security features. Here are some clarifications to questions we receive.
“How do I know the scanner is reading my ballot correctly?” We tested more than 10,000 ballots this election. We ran test ballots through every scanner in use and verified the scanned ballots matched the expected results. They matched 100% of the time. The scanners are sealed after testing. During the election, bi-partisan election officers track check-in and vote totals. After the election, Virginia runs an audit of all 133 counties and cities to verify the results. Rigorous testing, state requirements, and experienced professionals all make sure our ballot scanners work correctly.
“Do the voter rolls have lots of noncitizens? Are they voting?” No. We complete more than 100,000 updates to the voter rolls and registration mailings each year. These updates are most commonly due to people moving. We examined voters cancelled for their citizen status and found the number of voters cancelled for this reason was typically only 10-15 voters per month out of 330,000 voters. The reason these voters’ status was set to “non-citizen” is because they failed to check a box on a poorly designed DMV form, not because they were known illegal or residential aliens.
“Is mail voting a secure process?” Yes. Any ballot cast has a one-to-one relationship to a voter regardless of the voting method. If you vote by mail, your ballot is checked in just like when you go to an early voting site or an Election Day polling place. You can only get a mail ballot if you request one and it is only sent to your address. Once a voter casts their ballot, they cannot vote again. The system is designed to prevent fraud and abuse. All mail voters in PWC can track their ballot online with BallotTrax, a free service that enables them to follow their ballot at every step.
I encourage you to vote with confidence knowing a team of three bi-partisan Electoral Board members, 40+ non-partisan staff, and 1,000+ bi-partisan election officers do the diligent work of executing a fair election with many voting options. If you have questions or need help, please rely on official information at pwcvotes.org or call us at 703-792-6470. Our team is dedicated to upholding the law and to helping you!
