Dhiren Shah: Welcome to this interview Mr. Durkin. Let’s get to the big question on everyone’s minds: Is it possible for some party to mess with mail-in voting, and how do officials like yourself prevent it?
Chris Durkin: Preventing voter fraud is of the utmost importance. Voter fraud is extremely rare. The Federal Bureau of Investigation testified to Congress recently that there were no reports of organized voter fraud with vote by mail ballots. When a voter votes a vote by mail ballot, that voter signs a certificate envelope that contains their voted ballot. Before that ballot is approved, the signature must be verified and matched against the registered signature of that voter on file. There are two Republicans and two Democrats that vote to approve or disapprove any questionable ballots.
DS: Besides mail-in voting, some in person locations will be open. What do those voters need to know before coming to the polls?
CD: If a voter decides to go to the polls, they can vote on a provisional paper ballot. The provisional paper ballot will be returned to the County Election Offices and if that voter did not vote on a vote by mail ballot and is qualified to voter, then that vote will be counted. A disabled voter can vote at the polling site by utilizing the audio component of the voting machine which reads the ballot to the voter. Also, a voter can deliver their vote by mail ballot to a board worker at their polling place on Election Day.
DS: Do you think the post office can deliver the mail-in-ballots in time?
CD: I trust the men and women of the U.S. Post Office to deliver the ballots to voters and return voted ballots to the County Board of Elections to be counted. There have been cuts in overtime and we’ve seen a slowdown of mail service, but we are mailing ballots to voters 35 days before Election Day, which should be plenty of time for the Post Office to deliver ballots to voters. There will be 25 secure ballot boxes located throughout Essex County that voters can drop their voted ballots in so that they can have their ballots back to the Board of Elections in a timely manner.
DS: What steps are being taken to protect poll workers from COVID-19?
CD: The polling sites that have been selected by the Board of Elections are larger sites, where board workers can practice social distancing. There will be many tables set up to maintain 6 feet of distance between board workers and voters. There are both masks and gloves provided to poll workers. There is mandatory cleaning throughout the day of surfaces after each voter has voted.
DS: In addition to the voting process, how has COVID-19 affected other services provided by the County Clerk’s office (passports and other services you offer to the community?
CD: COVID-19 halted all of our services besides Election services. We have continued vault services by mail only. We have been providing swearing-in services to Notary Public applicants since June by appointment only. We just began accepting U.S. Passport applications by appointment every Wednesday. We also issue County Identification cards by appointment only.
DS: Do you have any advice for administrators who are battling the coronavirus?
CD: Put the safety of employees first, while still maintaining excellent service. Elections are essential, and I am so proud of Essex County’s election workers who have experienced so many challenges during this pandemic, and they’ve gone above and beyond in their duties; working nights and weekends, and delivering ballots by hand.
DS: Due to the nature of this year’s election, it may take some time before the results are known. If there is an issue with the presidential vote, what is likely to happen?
CD: Because of the increase of vote by mail, most of the votes are cast earlier and the results take longer to tally because every vote is a paper ballot vote. Also, there is more time allowed for ballots to come in through the mail and still be counted if the ballot is postmarked Election Day or prior.
DS: Thank you very much for your time.
