Spokane County Auditor Vicky Dalton is breathing easier now that the August primary election is certified.
That’s because the election was the first to be run using a unified state election system, rather than county-by-county. The election was also the first in which people could register to vote and then cast their ballots on Election Day. That change was part of a package of election reforms mandated by the legislature.
All in all, Dalton says, the new system worked well, in part because it required county elections offices to upgrade their computer systems and software.
With concerns about national election security heading into next year’s presidential election, she believes Washington is in better shape.
“I think from a cyber security perspective, it is a safer system. It’s centralized control. One set of firewalls, as compared to 39 sets of firewalls. We still have aspects that we can probably improve on, but I think, in the big picture, we’re going to be safer," Dalton said.
She says the new rules allow voters a new three-week window from 29 days before the election to eight days before the election. That’s time when they can register to vote or report a change of address online. Dalton says about 5,600 Spokane county residents took advantage of that period, which means they received the appropriate ballots in the mail.
