The vast majority of voters in King County have made it clear that they would rather fill out their ballots at their kitchen table than in a polling booth. I support Executive Sims’ efforts to consolidate King County’s voting system to all-mail balloting and look forward to reviewing his proposal in more detail.

As greater numbers of citizens join over 70 percent of King County voters in casting their ballots absentee, the King County Elections Section must be proactive in implementing the systems and technology to ensure accuracy, security, and transparency in processing higher volumes of absentee ballots. Implementing all-mail balloting will streamline the voting system and allow greater efficiencies in how we use our staff and resources.

It is important that we make this transition carefully and with ample time for public input. We must ensure that the new all-mail system will be secure, that any new procedures and technology are well-tested and fully understood by staff, and that opportunities remain for those who prefer or need to cast their vote in person.