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Election update: at least 28,000 votes still to be counted 

 

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Post-election update sent by San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano:
– With another successful election day/night behind us, here is a recap and a bit of what to expect in the coming days.

Election Day/night

  • The first results that were posted shortly after 8 p.m. were the Vote-By-Mail ballots that were received and processed up until Monday, Nov. 7, 2022.
  • As the precinct ballots that were voted at a polling place were returned, their results were tabulated and compiled into the overall countywide results.
  • This provided our final unofficial election night results of 58,096.

 

Ballots counted after Election Day

Below is the breakdown of what the processes are for the coming weeks.

We will continue to process:

  • “Last Minute” Vote by Mail Ballots: Vote by Mail ballots that arrive the day before or on Election Day either by mail, returned at a polling place or deposited in a Ballot Drop Box. There are thousands of these “Last Minute” VBM ballots still to process.

 

We will have the total estimated number posted on the website by noon tomorrow.

  • Postmarked Vote by Mail ballots: Under California law, ballots may be counted even if they arrive after Election Day, as long as they are received by mail no later than 7 days after the election and are postmarked on or before Election Day.
  • Missing or mismatched signature: A voter’s signature on the returned Vote-ByMail identification envelope must compare with the signature(s) in the voter’s registration record. If the voter did not sign the ballot envelope, or if the elections official has determined that the signature on the envelope does not compare to the signature(s) of the voter in the voter’s record, the elections official/staff will provide the voter with the applicable notice to cure the missing or mismatched signature. This notice must be returned to the ROV no later than 2 days prior to the certification of the election.
  • Provisional ballots: These are the last ballots counted because they must be researched and verified; it may take a few weeks, but every valid vote will be counted. Because we had the Vote-By-Mail Call Center active during Election Day, there aren’t as many as there used to be in prior elections. Still, this is a process that will take place towards the end of the canvass.

 

With all of these processes left to do, we anticipate that we will certify the election, meaning finalize counting all the ballots, by Dec. 8, 2022. It is important to understand that the 30 days that are allowed by law to certify an election includes holidays and weekends. If we just count regular business days, there are only 19 days for us to process and count the thousands of remaining Vote-By-Mail and provisional ballots.

Here is a simple breakdown of numbers as of today:

  • Number of SLO County Registered Voters: 182,291
  • Vote By Mail Ballots Counted Prior to Election Day: 51,200
  • Voters that voted at the polls on Election Day: 6,896
  • Voters that voted provisionally at the polling place on Election Day: approx. 800.
  • Voters that returned their Vote-By-Mail ballot at a polling place on Election Day: approx.
    22,720 (still processing all the returns)
  • Vote-By-Mail ballots received in the mail today: approx. 5,000
  • Challenged Vote-By-Mail Ballots: approx. 559 (This includes VBM envelopes with mis-compared voter signatures or no voter signature or no ID provided for first-time federal voters)

 

All updates will be posted on our website www.slovote.com.

Extended hours

We will be process and counting Vote-By-Mail ballots on Friday, Nov.11, 2022, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Note: In observance of the Veteran’s Day holiday, the County Government Building will be closed. Those that wish to observe will need to call (805) 781- 5228 that day so that a member of the Clerk-Recorder team can escort them into the building.

Should there be any questions, contact County Clerk-Recorder at Elaina Cano at ecano@co.slo.ca.us.

-Sent by San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano

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The news staff of the Paso Robles Daily News wrote or edited this story from local contributors and press releases. The news staff can be reached at info@pasoroblesdailynews.com.