A Message from Jefferson County Clerk Bobbie Holsclaw
I just want to express my deepest thanks to the thousands of civic minded volunteers who served as election officers in Jefferson County this year. This was the greatest number of officers we have ever needed, as this was the largest number of voting precincts and early voting sites we have ever attempted.
All their good training and patience was needed, as early on Tuesday morning, we had an issue with our e-poll books, which were slowed down, keeping people waiting up to an hour to vote.
Fortunately, our election officers were able to work under pressure in that demanding environment, and then help us fix the issue that was slowing the e-poll books, by midmorning.
It turned out our vendor, ES&S, had simply miscalculated the amount of data for voter updates that could go through our secure wi-fi system that morning. We have used this wi-fi system previously without such problems for several elections.
Had we known this was a problem in advance, obviously, we would have set up an alternative procedure for loading data the previous week. Tuesday morning, when the problem was identified, we made adjustments, allowing the e-poll books to operate at normal speed and the lines soon cleared out.
No voting security was jeopardized by doing this, all votes and voters were properly recorded; and counting was completely accurate. There are several layers of redundant security in our Kentucky voting system, for good measure.
Some interested parties suggested that Tuesday hours for voting be extended. I completely sympathize with the intent of that request. Some people who tried to vote Tuesday morning may not have been able to wait in line for the time needed.
However, as a practical matter, the issue was being addressed and the lines were able to clear out largely by noon. Add to that, the County Board of Elections just does not have the legal power to extend election hours.
An appeal was made to Jefferson Circuit Court for such relief as well, but, as Judge Haner stated in his opinion- case law also fairly establishes Kentucky judges don't have the power, either, to grant such a request.
Compared to problems being reported around the country with lines and voting Tuesday, we did remarkably better, even when the problem with our e-poll books occurred. This is a testament to the wise, bi-partisan way we conduct elections in Kentucky, with our Boards of Election, our bipartisan split election staff, and our thousands of election officers from both parties.
I am glad to say, once again, we very rarely have delays with our elections in Jefferson County, but when we do, a lot of knowledgeable people from both sides are able to work quickly to resolve them.
Bobbie Holsclaw
Jefferson County Clerk
