“We are on the verge of a historic change for the people of King County,” said Councilmember Bob Ferguson. “The bottom-line is that vote by mail should increase the ease of voting and therefore increase voter participation in our democratic process.”

“Why continue two separate voting systems when the people of King County have already chosen their preferred method of casting their ballots,” said Councilmember Julia Patterson. “It’s time to join the rest of the state in creating a system that is geared towards assisting the majority of county voters, while providing a mechanism for those who still want to go to a polling place.”

“The citizens of King County have made their preference clear. In 2005, over three-quarters of our voters chose to take advantage of the convenience of casting their ballots by mail,” said Council Chair Larry Phillips. “If we are to convert to an all-mail system, we must get to work communicating the changes to the public, addressing security concerns, and putting systems in place to ensure a successful transition.”

Nearly 60 percent of the registered voters in King County vote by mail, and 81 percent voters in the 2005 primary election used a mail ballot. The current system requires 528 polling locations and close to 4,000 poll workers for a countywide election, plus a full scale mail ballot processing operation and facility.

In 2005, the state Legislature approved legislation that gives counties the authority to conduct elections by mail. Thirty-four of the state’s 39 counties have made the decision to conduct all-mail elections. The legislation approved by the Committee-of-the-Whole directs the Director of the Elections Section to begin conducting all-mail elections starting in 2007. Regional locations for those who want to continue to vote at the polls and neighborhood ballot drop boxes will be part of the conversion to the all-mail system.