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Safeguards prevent rigged elections, county clerk says Jackson County Clerk Chris Walker loads ballots into a sorting machine at the Elections Office in Medford. Mail Tribune file photo Tuesday Oct 25, 2016 at 5:13 PM Oct 26, 2016 at 9:43 AM Damian Mann Mail Tribune @reporterdm Recent presidential campaign rhetoric about a "rigged election" doesn't jibe with the safeguards in place at the Jackson County Elections Office. "We all have opinions, we all have likes and dislikes, but they have no room here at the Elections Office," Jackson County Clerk Chris Walker said. Even though observers from all political parties as well as unaffiliated voters watch the ballots being counted, Walker said she stresses transparency and non-partisan decorum. While Walker stands by the validity of the overall results, she said election issues do come up from time to time. "Is there a perfect system out there? No," she said. But Walker has never encountered any widespread tampering of the election locally and anticipates there are enough safeguards in place for the Nov. 8 election as well. That's not to say she hasn't observed some problematic election behavior before. About six years ago, a lone man came in to get replacement ballots for himself and his wife and promptly filled out both in front of elections officials and then turned them in. "We knew she wasn't there, so we reported it to the Secretary of State's Office," Walker said. Signing another person's ballot is a Class C felony, she said. The Elections Center has a variety of safeguards that prevent tampering. As soon as the ballots are received, elections workers, observers and volunteers keep a close eye on them. Video cameras monitor all activities inside the building on West Main Street. The tabulation machines are not connected to the Internet, so it would be extremely difficult for a hacker or some other group to manipulate the results, Walker said. On Nov. 1, Walker said she plans to conduct a logic and integrity run through the counting machine to make sure it's working correctly. A motion-sensitive camera is always watching the machine to make sure it isn't being tampered with, Walker said. Many repairs of the machine can be handled by elections officials, but technicians also are called in to repair laser scanners and other issues when they arise. Walker said she's heard false rumors about the potential ability to tamper with election equipment. "There's a lot of bad information out there," she said. For instance, one criticism of Oregon is that it has a certain brand of voting machine that could be tampered with, but Oregon hasn't used voting machines since 1998, she said. Voters themselves can now keep track of their ballots. A tracking system can send text or email alerts about the location of ballots from the time they're mailed until the time they're opened at the Elections Center. To sign up, go to: http://jacksoncountyor.org/clerk/Elections/Upcoming-Current-Elections/General-Primary-Elections. Every signature is also verified to prevent fraud, she said. The Elections Center is always on the lookout for any instance where an unusually high number of voters are registered at the same address. Jackson County also participates in a program where death lists and driver's license data is shared across multiple states. To register to vote, you only must provide a full name, address, date of birth and signature and check mark that you are a citizen and at least 17 years of age. In order to qualify for the Federal Portion of your ballot, you must provide identifying documents on your registration according to the Federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA). Sometimes elections officials run into unusual voting situations. On Tuesday, Walker went to a retirement home to help an 85-year-old Medford woman who was sight-impaired fill out her ballot. Walker brought a witness along with her to make sure the process was performed fairly and impartially while the ballot information was read and filled out. "It took us about an hour," she said. Walker said in those instances, she recommends a family member also attend the ballot signing. When there is a question about voter intent when a ballot isn't filled out correctly, a mixed party, two member team helps make the determination, Walker said. On the first day that someone begins working at the Elections Center, Walker has the volunteer say the Pledge of Allegiance, and then Walker describes the importance of the job ahead. "We conduct all election in a non-partisan manner always,” Walker said. “There is no room for partisan politics in elections administration." Voter signature verification hasn't started yet, so Walker said she's not sure how voter turnout looks so far, though she's expecting about 80 percent. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow him on www.twitter.com/reporterdm.