Proper Chain of Custody for Ballot Drop Boxes
In the 2020 General Election, 57% of voters used “drop boxes” to return their ballots to the Salt Lake County Clerk’s Office.
The use of drop boxes increases the number of steps required to get your ballot to the secured holding section of the Clerks office. More steps naturally increase the chances of error.
It is crucial that the Clerk’s office establish a proper chain of custody for ballots picked up at ballot drop boxes. The purpose of a chain of custody for ballot drop boxes is to make sure that the ballots put into them get to the Clerk’s office without being lost or manipulated.
A proper chain of custody for ballot collection from drop boxes should include the following measures:
- Electronic time stamps which show how long it takes to transport ballots from a dropbox to the Clerk’s office
- A log that shows how many ballots were picked up at a particular dropbox and how many made it to the Clerk’s office
GOUD proposes using these and other measures to ensure the security of drop box ballots and create records that can be used to track chain of custody.
Also see: Op-Ed to the SL Tribune
