Virginia election official sheds light on what happens after casting your ballot
HANOVER COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Scores of voters are expected to line up at polling locations across the state on Tuesday Nov. 5 and 8News is looking at how those votes are counted once they are cast. According to the Office of the Hanover County Registrar, more than 30,000 people have voted early in the county. Even though early voting ended on Saturday, none of those 30,000 votes will be looked at or sorted until everyone at a precinct has voted. “Here in Virginia, every single ballot that is cast is counted” said Teri Smithson, the General Registrar and Director of Elections for Hanover County. Smithson says one of the main reasons why it takes so long for elections to be called the way they are counted. “When you go into the polling place on Election Day, you're checked into the poll book,” Smithson said. And so, when you cast your ballot, you've received credit for having voted in that election, but your ballot isn't actually tabulated until after 7 on Election Night.” Officials will first start with the ballots that were submitted during early voting. Then, they count the vote-by-mail ballots before finally counting the votes cast on Election Day. The provisional ballots, however, aren't sorted out until the Wednesday following Election Day. “All of the provisional ballots that have been cast on Election Day are then decided upon by the electoral board," Smithson said. "And then the ballots that are accepted are then also put into a tabulator." According to Smithson, in Virginia, the only ballots that get counted by hand are mail-in ballots that were sent to members of the military or Americans living overseas. Those ballots require hand counting because the tabulation machines will only read a certain kind of paper which overseas ballots may not use. When it comes to voting in person on Election Day, Smithson said she and other election officials are there to make the process easy. “I anticipate a very heavy turnout tomorrow,” said Smithson. “Our officers are there to help you cast a ballot or to get your ballot, and they all want to give you that sticker. You've got to have an ‘I voted’ sticker.” The polls open at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5, make sure you are in line before the polls close at 7 p.m. in order to ensure your vote is counted. To confirm your polling location, visit the Virginia Department of Elections' website.
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HANOVER COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Scores of voters are expected to line up at polling locations across the state on Tuesday Nov. 5 and 8News is looking at how those votes are counted once they are cast.
According to the Office of the Hanover County Registrar, more than 30,000 people have voted early in the county. Even though early voting ended on Saturday, none of those 30,000 votes will be looked at or sorted until everyone at a precinct has voted.
“Here in Virginia, every single ballot that is cast is counted” said Teri Smithson, the General Registrar and Director of Elections for Hanover County.
Smithson says one of the main reasons why it takes so long for elections to be called the way they are counted.
“When you go into the polling place on Election Day, you're checked into the poll book,” Smithson said. And so, when you cast your ballot, you've received credit for having voted in that election, but your ballot isn't actually tabulated until after 7 on Election Night.”
Officials will first start with the ballots that were submitted during early voting. Then, they count the vote-by-mail ballots before finally counting the votes cast on Election Day. The provisional ballots, however, aren't sorted out until the Wednesday following Election Day.
“All of the provisional ballots that have been cast on Election Day are then decided upon by the electoral board," Smithson said. "And then the ballots that are accepted are then also put into a tabulator."
According to Smithson, in Virginia, the only ballots that get counted by hand are mail-in ballots that were sent to members of the military or Americans living overseas. Those ballots require hand counting because the tabulation machines will only read a certain kind of paper which overseas ballots may not use.
When it comes to voting in person on Election Day, Smithson said she and other election officials are there to make the process easy.
“I anticipate a very heavy turnout tomorrow,” said Smithson. “Our officers are there to help you cast a ballot or to get your ballot, and they all want to give you that sticker. You've got to have an ‘I voted’ sticker.”
The polls open at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5, make sure you are in line before the polls close at 7 p.m. in order to ensure your vote is counted. To confirm your polling location, visit the Virginia Department of Elections' website.
