BROKEN BOW, Neb.- Custer County’s ballot counting machine performed as expected during a mock election Tuesday, with 543 test ballots processed as election officials prepare for the November 3 general election.
The test is required ahead of statewide elections and is designed to verify that the equipment and procedures used to count ballots are working correctly.
Custer County Clerk Kelly Jacobsen, Deputy Clerk Nissa Shelby and Dawn Raber-Goodwin participated in Tuesday’s test. The process began with a “zero report,” which is run and documented to clear existing numbers from the machine and verify a clean slate for the current election.
The ballots were then run through the machine, which separates those it counts normally from ballots containing write-in votes and those that trigger an error for additional review.
All 543 test ballots were processed as expected. Some ballots triggered errors and had to be run through the machine again to clear those errors, a normal part of the testing process. Officials noted that the machine does not always provide a clear reason for setting a ballot aside rather than counting it.
The machine receives annual servicing ahead of the primary election, and the mock election provides another opportunity to verify that it is functioning properly ahead of next month’s election.
Write-in votes follow a separate process. Rather than stopping the count every time a ballot contains a write-in, the machine places those ballots in a separate stack. Staff then takes them to a computer that captures an image of the write-in area on each ballot. A person reviews the image, determines which candidate the vote is intended for and adds it to that candidate’s total.
Jacobsen and Shelby said they wanted voters to understand the requirements for write-in candidates. The deadline for candidates to file the necessary paperwork passed last week, and write-in votes for candidates who did not complete that process will not count.
For voters writing in an eligible candidate, the last name is the most important piece of information. A first name alone will not count as a valid vote. The spelling does not have to be exact, but it must be clear enough to identify the intended candidate.
Following the mock election, the test ballots are sealed and locked in the county vault. They are retained for 22 months before being discarded.
The election night process will follow the same procedures used in previous elections. After polls close, poll workers bring ballots to the county election office, where officials run them through the machine and compile the results.
Results are transferred using flash drives from the machine to a computer that is not connected to the internet. From there, the totals are compiled for reporting, with results initially considered unofficial until the required certification process is completed.
With Tuesday’s test completed successfully, the county’s ballot counting equipment and procedures have been checked ahead of the November 3 election.
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