Idaho

Idaho’s quiet success story is absentee voting is | Becky Funk/Idaho Capital Sun

Absentee voting has quietly served Idaho for decades. It gives seniors, rural residents, working families, and military members a trusted way to cast their ballots. For many, it’s not just convenient but essential. And for our active-duty service members in the U.S. and abroad, absentee voting isn’t simply a matter of convenience it is the only way their voices can be heard. A soldier serving away from home should never lose the right to vote for the leaders who shape the policies that affect their service. All veterans should always have a voice in the very democracy they helped defend. Absentee voting ensures that the men and women who have given so much for our country continue to have a say in its future. Absentee voting isn’t mail-in voting. One common misunderstanding is confusing absentee voting with universal mail-in voting. They are not the same. Read Article

An Idaho County Will Publish Everyone’s Ballots to Combat Mistrust | Mike Baker/The New York Times

In the aftermath of the 2020 election, as supporters of Donald J. Trump scoured the nation for any malfeasance that might explain his defeat, the county clerk’s office in Boise, Idaho, was inundated with queries. Voters wanted to know who had built the county’s voting machines. What software were they using? Did any parts come from China? Were the machines vulnerable to hacking? Outlandish claims were spreading in conservative circles across the country that votes had been discarded or altered in a coordinated effort to rig the election. Trent Tripple, a Republican who had worked in the Ada County clerk’s office and was elected to lead it starting last year, said he was convinced there was a solution that could help people gain confidence in their elections once more: It was time to publish the ballots for everyone to see. Read Article

Idaho: Will a Transparency Tool Diffuse Election Skepticism? | Jule Pattison-Gordon/Government Technology

An Idaho county has built a new tool that allows the public to see cast vote records online. Ada County, Idaho, partnered with civic software company Civera on the tool, which it used for the first time during its May elections, publishing ballot images alongside corresponding cast vote records to show how the tabulator machine electronically recorded the selections. The county has so far used the tool to publish information from prior elections going back to 2022, the earliest for which it still has the data. Now, with the tool up and running, other counties around the country are reportedly in talks to adopt it, too. The tool, Ballot Verifier, allows anyone to access ballot images and cast vote record for free. It also offers infographics of election results, search functionality for specific races and the ability to download results. Read Article

Idaho: ‘Very organized chaos’: A look at vote counting at the Ada County Elections Office | Sarah Cutler/Yahoo

You voted in Tuesday’s primary election in Ada County. You stopped by your precinct, filled out a paper ballot and fed it into a voting machine. Of course, you got an “I Voted” sticker for the road. Your job was done, but then what happened? At the Ada County Elections Office, dozens of people were gearing up to do their jobs as part of what appeared to be a well-oiled machine — other than a few complaints about the cookie selection in the workers’ break room. The Idaho Statesman visited Tuesday night to get a look behind the scenes of the county’s vote-counting process. Here’s how it played out. Read Article

Idaho: Ada County Elections Office unveils online Ballot Verifier tool | Clark Corbin/Idaho Capital Sun

Ada County Elections officials have introduced a groundbreaking online Ballot Verifier tool, aiming to enhance transparency in elections. The tool allows the public to access scanned ballot images and corresponding cast vote records for all Ada County elections from 2022 onwards, without revealing voters’ personal details. By providing easy verification of tabulated ballots and vote records, officials hope to bolster trust in the election process. Previously, accessing such data required a public records request, but the new tool proactively makes it available online. Developed by a software company called Civera, the tool cost $40,000 for development and entails ongoing licensing fees. Read Article

Idaho: A Canyon County voting machine accepted a photocopied ballot, but officials aren’t worried – here’s why | Erin Banks Rusby/Idaho Press

In preparation for the upcoming election, Canyon County conducts a “logic and accuracy” test to verify the proper functioning of ballot scanners. During a recent test, a member of the public suggested running photocopied ballots through the machine, which surprisingly were accepted. This raised concerns about the security of the voting process. Secretary of State Phil McGrane clarified that only two counties in Idaho use unique identifiers on ballots, and others like Canyon County have alternative safeguards to prevent duplicate submissions. County officials emphasized the multiple layers of security in place, including the scrutiny of poll workers, making it highly unlikely for a voter to submit duplicated ballots. While unique identifiers offer traceability, concerns about voter privacy and secure ballots come into play. Further discussions with election officials and voting equipment providers are planned to address any potential gaps in the system. Read Article

Idaho lawmakers want hand recounts during election audits | James Dawson/Boise State Public Radio

Post-election audits must be done by hand under the first bill to make it to the House floor this year. State legislators passed a law last year requiring a random audit of each primary and general election in Idaho. Counties are randomly drawn, with the requirement that small and larger counties alike are chosen. But the law never specified how audits should be conducted. Despite that, Secretary of State Phil McGrane said state officials did previously use hand recounts. “This is just affirming the current practice,” said McGrane. “It was done previously by directive of [former Secretary of State Lawerence Denney]. That directive will continue.” Votes are typically scanned and counted by a machine, which can occasionally misread faintly filled-in bubbles, or make other errors.

Full Article: Idaho lawmakers want hand recounts during election audits | Boise State Public Radio

Idaho Republicans considers resolution to reject 2020 election results | Keith Ridler/Associated Press

The Idaho Republican Party will consider 31 resolutions at its three-day convention starting Thursday, including one already adopted by Texas Republicans that President Joe Biden isn’t the legitimate leader of the country. The Idaho resolution in the deeply conservative state that Donald Trump won with 64 percent of the vote in 2020 is nearly identical to the Texas resolution that was passed last month, stating: “We reject the certified results of the 2020 presidential election; and we hold that acting president Joseph Robinette Biden was not legitimately elected by the people of the United States.” Both the Idaho and Texas resolutions contend that secretaries of state circumvented their state legislatures, even though both states have Republican secretaries of state. Jim Jones, a former chief justice of the Idaho Supreme Court as well as a former Republican state attorney general, called the resolution rejecting the 2020 presidential election results “asinine,” noting multiple courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, rejected attempts to overturn the election.

Full Article: Idaho Republicans considers resolution to reject 2020 election results | PBS NewsHour

Idaho Governor’s Cybersecurity Task Force Releases Recommendations | Betsy Z. Russell/Big Country News

After eight months of work, Gov. Brad Little’s Cybersecurity Task Force released its final report Wednesday at the Idaho National Laboratory, laying out 18 recommendations to improve Idaho’s resistance to cyber-attacks. They range from increasing K-12 computer science and math literacy to outreach to rural communities on how to combat threats to establishing a “Cyber Fusion Center” to communicate threats and lead response for everyone from government, utilities and universities to private companies. “We all know that cybersecurity intrusions, corruption and fraud are global threats,” Little said. “They challenge the security of all citizens, businesses and governments at every level.” Led by the INL and the Idaho Department of Commerce, the 19-member task force started meeting last August, focusing on critical infrastructure, workforce development and education, election security and cybersecurity awareness. “Active public engagement is vital,” said Tom Kealey, director of the Idaho Department of Commerce, who co-chaired the task force with INL Associate Lab Director Zach Tudor. “With nearly every Idaho citizen, business and organization connected to the internet and other networks, cybersecurity becomes everyone’s responsibility.”

Full Article: Idaho Governor’s Cybersecurity Task Force Releases Recommendations | Idaho | bigcountrynewsconnection.com

Idaho Senate committee approves post-election audits bill | Kelcie Moseley-Morris/Idaho Capital Sun

The Senate State Affairs Committee advanced two bills Wednesday morning related to the Idaho Secretary of State’s office, including a new law that would require post-election audits of a random selection of counties after a general or primary election. Senate Bill 1274 was introduced to the committee by Deputy Secretary of State Jason Hancock, who said the audits would increase public confidence in election results, and it’s a practice that many states have already implemented. “We take election integrity very seriously at the Secretary of State’s office, we take allegations of election insecurity very seriously, and … we have a lot of people right now who think we have problems with our election system,” Hancock said. Following the presidential election in 2020, former President Donald Trump and his supporters have alleged voter fraud and other conspiracies they say led to President Joe Biden’s electoral victory. Ten Idaho legislators signed a letter in October calling for a 50-state audit of the election results. Election results have been audited in several states, including Idaho, and no fraud has been found. Under the new bill, the audits would be open to attendance by media personnel, candidates and representatives from political parties. The exact procedures for the audits would be developed with county clerks, according to the bill text.

Full Article: Idaho Senate committee approves post-election audits bill – Idaho Capital Sun

Idaho could see more election audits to ‘enhance transparency and confidence’ in results | Kristen McPeek/KBOI

Governor Little’s recommended budget allocates half a million dollars to go to integrity audits in the state. The purpose is to enhance transparency and confidence in election results. Election integrity is a growing conversation across the country, and state and local officials here in Idaho say it’s important to invest in our elections as more questions are raised. “Various people thought there were inaccuracies in the election results for president,” said Deputy Secretary of State, Jason Hancock. And while questions are being raised, Hancock says that there haven’t been any inaccuracies reported in the state of Idaho. “I have a lot of confidence in our voting systems here,” Hancock said. As concerns and conversations around election integrity develop across the country, Hancock says Idaho needs to invest in elections for accuracy and confidence to voters.

Full Article: Idaho could see more election audits to ‘enhance transparency and confidence’ in results | KBOI

Idaho bills MyPillow CEO for election audit that showed no fraud | Gino Spocchia/The Independent

MyPillow CEO and Trump ally Mike Lindell has reportedly been billed for his false election fraud claims after officials in Idaho audited ballots to prove him wrong. Idaho’s state secretary, Chad Houck, told a local newspaper that while no fraud was found in his recount of ballots in three of Idaho’s 44 counties, Mr Lindell will be billed roughly $6,500 (£4,700). Mr Houck told the Idaho Statseman on Thursday that after his office recounted a handful of ballots that were “low hanging fruit”, an Idaho resident recommend Mr Lindell be billed. Recounts in three small states were within a percentage of the original tally of 2020’s results, Mr Houck said, and showed that Mr Lindell’s allegations were “fabrications”. “As we looked at how much exposure this particular set of data had gotten in the last several weeks, we felt it was reasonable to, at first, just look at the counties that had no electronic means,” said Mr Houck.

Full Article: Idaho bills MyPillow CEO for election audit that showed no fraud | The Independent

Idaho wants MyPillow CEO to pay for costs to refute his false election fraud claim | Hayat Norimine/Idaho Statesman

After MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell falsely claimed election fraud occurred in Idaho, Secretary of State officials audited three counties to disprove that claim. Now, the state plans to send Lindell a bill. Idaho Chief Deputy Secretary of State Chad Houck confirmed to the Idaho Statesman that the office plans to bill the CEO for the costs associated with auditing the three counties, a total estimated at about $6,500. Houck announced the bill on CNN on Thursday. In Idaho, former President Donald Trump handily won in the 2020 presidential election with 63.8% of the votes. But Lindell, in a widely circulated document titled “The Big Lie,” alleged that presidential election results in all 44 Idaho counties were electronically manipulated to switch votes from Trump to Joe Biden. Seven Idaho counties have no electronic means to count votes, Houck said. Houck said the suggestion to bill Lindell came from a citizen, and that totaling the expenses and sending the bill will likely take at least another two weeks.

Full Article: Idaho plans to send MyPillow CEO a bill after election audit | Idaho Statesman

Idaho Election denialists smacked down by secretary of state | Reid Wilson/The Hill

Conspiracy theorists pushing misinformation about the 2020 elections took their allegations to Idaho, and Idaho officials pushed right back. Top Gem State election administrators in Secretary of State Lawrence Denney’s (R) office said late Wednesday they had visited two counties to conduct a hand recount of last year’s presidential contest after hearing from readers of a website linked to MyPillow chief executive Mike Lindell, widely discredited for spreading easily disprovable misinformation in recent months. Denney’s office said it received allegations, in the form of screenshots of a report published on Lindell’s site, that vote tallies in all 44 of Idaho’s counties showed evidence of “electronic manipulation.” The only problem: At least seven of Idaho’s 44 counties do not use any electronic steps in their vote-counting process, making the claims impossible. Those counties, all small rural areas, still count ballots by hand, bypassing electronics or machines altogether. That process is feasible because there are so few ballots cast.

Full Article: Election denialists smacked down by Idaho secretary of state | TheHill

Idaho Election Officials Reject Fraud Claims After Hand Recounts | James Dawson/Boise State Public Radio

Idaho’s top election officials are refuting claims that the results of the 2020 presidential race were rigged in the state, conducting recounts in two counties within the past week. The Idaho Secretary of State’s office said it recently investigated claims that votes cast for former President Donald Trump were electronically switched for President Joe Biden. Trump won Idaho with nearly 64% of the vote. The assertions from MyPillow CEO and Trump ally Mike Lindell, dubbed “The Big Lie,” have been found to be baseless in other states. They raised red flags for Idaho state officials. “There’s illogical arguments that are made and they’re made on such a blanket level, it’s almost impossible to comprehend how something like that could be pulled off,” said Chief Deputy Secretary of State Chad Houck. For example, at least seven of Idaho’s counties, which run their own elections, have no electronic components to their vote counting process. And no voting machine certified for use in Idaho can be connected to the internet or accessed remotely over something like Bluetooth. “That was a huge red flag, and one we knew we could either prove or disprove fairly directly,” Houck said. All votes in the state are also recorded on paper to preserve an audit trail. The secretary of state’s office conducted hand recounts in Butte and Camas counties last week. They found a 10-vote discrepancy in the two counties – well short of Lindell’s claims of 116 and 54 votes respectfully that supposedly swapped to Biden. Another partial recount is set for Bonner County Saturday.

Full Article: Idaho Election Officials Reject Fraud Claims After Hand Recounts | Boise State Public Radio

Idaho Secretary of State refutes Mike Lindell’s statewide election manipulation claims | KMVT

Staff from the Idaho Secretary of State’s office visited two Idaho counties last week following receipt of information that alleged statewide manipulation of Idaho’s election results. “The office of the Idaho Secretary of State takes free, fair, and accurate elections seriously,” says Secretary of State Lawerence Denney, “so when we are presented with allegations that come with specific details which we can examine, we want to do so.” The document in question, dubbed “The Big Lie” and shared publicly by a website bearing the copyright of Michael J. Lindell, claims that votes actually cast for Donald J. Trump had been switched electronically and recorded as votes for Joseph Biden. “Once we had the document in hand, we immediately believed there was something amiss,” says Chief Deputy Secretary Chad Houck. “This document alleged electronic manipulation in all 44 counties. At least 7 Idaho counties have no electronic steps in their vote counting processes,” states Houck, “That was a huge red flag, and one we knew we could either prove or disprove fairly directly.” Houck, along with members of the IDSOS Elections team, visited Camas and Butte counties, the 42nd and 43rd smallest counties on the list on Sept. 23rd. Not suspecting any issues, these two counties were selected due to their small size, and ease of recount.

Full Article: Idaho Secretary of State refutes Mike Lindell’s statewide election manipulation claims

Idaho Governor’s new Cybersecurity Task Force targets election integrity and security | Tristan Lewis|KTVB

Full Article: Idaho Gov. Little’s new Cybersecurity Task Force targets election integrity and security | ktvb.com

Editorial: ‘Voting shouldn’t be easy’? Idaho’s laws shouldn’t be based on rumors, Trump’s ‘big lie’ | Idaho Statesman

Idaho held two successful elections in 2020. One of them was an all-mail ballot in the May primary and the other was the November presidential election, in which more than a half-million people voted by mail, turnout was a record and Idaho surpassed 1 million registered voters for the first time. So why, now, do some Republican Idaho legislators want to mess with success? “You know what? Voting shouldn’t be easy,” Rep. Mike Moyle, R-Star, said on the House floor Thursday in pitching a bill that would make so-called “ballot harvesting” a felony. It’s hard to believe, but several Idaho Republican legislators are trying to pass laws to make it harder to vote. “Ballot harvesting,” despite its ominous-sounding name, is the practice of collecting and delivering ballots on behalf of someone else. In opposition to Moyle’s bill, some legislators, Republican and Democratic, testified to ballot harvesting themselves or having their kids harvest ballots in their households. In defending his bill, Moyle cited a 2018 North Carolina case in which a Republican operative had tampered with ballots in a congressional race that was won by the Republican candidate and was subsequently overturned. Note: The perpetrator was caught and prosecuted under the state’s existing laws. Further, what he did wrong was not “ballot harvesting”; it was tampering with the ballots. But we have noticed something else about the debate: It’s based on unfounded fears, rumors and ultimately, Donald Trump’s “Big Lie” that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Full Article: Idaho voting bills based on rumors and Trump’s ‘big lie’ | Idaho Statesman

Idaho: Ada County Election’s Office purchases almost half a million dollar ballot-sorting machine | Nicole Camarda/KIVI

With almost 144,000 absentee ballots already mailed, Ada County sent out their own record number of mail-in ballots for this year’s November election. Ada County purchased a machine to help with the sorting and signature verifications of absentee ballots. The almost half a million dollar Bluecrest ballot-sorting machine, nicknamed “Bessie,” allows the Ada County election’s office to scan in mail-in ballots as soon as they arrive. “It takes a picture of everyone’s signature that we then cross verify with our system,” Ada County elections director Saul Seyler says. Once the signatures are verified, the ballots will get re-run, and the machine will alert to anything that wasn’t adequately verified or causes of concerns.