Editor’s note: This story originally appeared in Carson Now. It is being republished as part of a partnership between The Nevada Independent and Carson Now.
According to a press release issued from the county clerk’s office, all Carson City voters will be receiving new official mail-in ballots due to an Independent American Party candidate being incorrectly listed as a Democrat.
According to the release, ballots will reissued Oct. 16.
Clerk-Recorder Scott Hoen, who answered questions by email through Carson City Public Information Officer Cameron Gresh, said that while new official mail-in ballots will be sent out, there is no word on when the sample ballots will be arriving.
Some people may be under the impression that ballots come from the Secretary of State’s office, but this is not the case. All ballots, sample and official, must come through each County Clerk’s office before they are distributed to voters.
According to Hoen, sample ballots are printed by Nevada State Printing after they are sent off by the Clerk-Recorder department. Hoen did not mention what date sample ballots were sent to the printers, which is located in Carson City.
Hoen said there was a “period of time” they had to wait for the Secretary of State to confirm whether candidates were on or off the ballot.
“Bottom line is that we waited to the last minute to put out the sample ballot to ensure the correct candidates were listed,” Hoen said.
The arrival of the mail ballot before the sample ballot was a “timing issue” as mail official ballots were shipped from Washington state through Reno, Hoen said, which allowed the mail ballots to arrive prior to the sample ballots.
According to the county clerk’s press release, those who have already voted by mail are asked to do so again with the corrected ballot.
When asked how an error could have been made, Hoen said that “staff in the Clerk-Recorder’s office work on proofing the ballots.”
“Ultimately, a mistake was made, and the Clerk-Recorder takes full responsibility and apologizes for the error,” Hoen said. “It was an error that no one caught before materials were sent to the printer. Additional processes are being set up to correct the situation and prevent errors in the future. In-person voting is not affected by this, and we expect a big turnout with early voting and election day.”
We will update with new information as it becomes available.
The release is as follows:
The Carson City Clerk-Recorder is resending ballots to all Carson City voters following the discovery of an error on ballots mailed to voters. Candidate Lynn Chapman was mistakenly identified as Democrat or “DEM” on the mail ballot, but the correct designation, which appears here, is Independent American Party or IAP”.
Every voter will receive a new ballot, listing the correct party affiliation, which will be mailed the week of October 14, 2024.
What do I do if I already marked and returned my original mail ballot?
– If you have already marked and returned the original mail ballot, please complete the CORRECTED ballot, and return it according to the instructions.What do I do if I have not yet voted my original mail ballot?
– If you have not returned the original mail ballot, please wait until you receive a CORRECTED mail ballot to mark your choices and return your CORRECTED ballot according to the instructions.Alternatively, you may appear to vote in-person during the early voting period or on Election Day. October 19, 2024 through November 1, 2024 and Return ballot envelopes have unique IDs assigned to the voter and in-person voters are tracked through Nevada’s Voter Registration Election Management System, ensuring that only one ballot will be counted.
All returned original ballots will be held until the corrected ballot is returned or the voter votes in person. If the corrected ballot from a voter who returned the original ballot is not returned and the voter does not vote in person, the Clerk-Recorder’s office will count the original ballot.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Carson City Elections Department at (775) 887-2270 or [email protected].
This story was updated at 12:55 p.m. on 10/10/2024 to include a response from Carson City Clerk-Recorder Scott Hoen and information about the sample ballots.
