BURRILLVILLE – Despite some lines, voting in advance of the Tuesday, Nov. 3 General Election has gone smoothly in Burrillville, with some 3,995 residents having already cast their ballots as of Thursday, Oct. 29.
By Monday evening, the figure had raised to 4,830.
And with Rhode Island Board of Elections officials stating that they’re prepared to tally those votes next week, a process implemented as an emergency measure in 2020 to curb the spread of COVID-19 could see expansion into future years.
“The general feeling with how we’ve handled this and how smoothly it’s gone – everyone’s been happy with it,” Town Clerk Vicky Martin told NRI NOW this week.
According to latest data released by the Secretary of State, 1,960 mail ballots have been turned in by Burrillville voters. Another 2,870 voters had stopped in to the the American Legion Hall on Harrisville Main Street to cast a ballot as of Monday night.
Martin noted that while technically, the state of Rhode Island doesn’t offer “early voting,” the term has been widely used throughout the 2020 election cycle to describe the expanded option for casting emergency ballots during the 20 days leading up to the General Election.
“It’s probably just easier to explain,” Martin noted of the term. “It can get very confusing.”
Regardless of moniker, the early process continued at the building beside Town Hall through 4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2. Polls in town opened at six locations at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3 for those wishing to cast a regular in-person vote. Those still unsure where to vote can view their polling location and a sample ballot at https://vote.sos.ri.gov/.
And Rhode Island’s results, which many initially thought would take up to several weeks to process, appear on track to be mostly available late Tuesday night.
This week, the state Board of Elections released a full timeline for tabulations that will see all but a few remaining drop box ballots and provisional ballots tallied on Tuesday.
The process will start with traditional ballots cast in person, with results from polling places statewide to be published starting at 8 p.m. Results from in-person early voting will follow, starting at 10 p.m.
Next will come mail ballots, with partial results to be posted on the Board of Elections website starting at 11 p.m. State officials reportedly began scanning the ballots this week and processed 175,000 by Thursday.
“They’re putting them in the machine but they’re not tallying them until the close of polls,” Martin explained.
In the event a voter tested positive for COVID-19 or was exposed and could get to the polls, emergency voting was been extended until 4 p.m. on Nov. 3 under executive order. The voter has the opportunity to send someone with a ballot application to the Board of Canvassers and authorize them to pick it up. The emergency ballot can then be voted at home and dropped in any drop box by 8 p.m.
Those final drop box votes will be added to totals on Wednesday, Nov. 4 and Thursday, Nov. 5. Provisional ballots will be added in from Nov. 7 through 9, with a final certification expected around Tuesday, Nov. 10.
“With an ongoing pandemic and the huge increase in mail and emergency ballots we’ve seen as a result, this is going to be an unprecedented Election Day, but one that the Rhode Island Board of Elections is fully prepared for,” said Robert Rapoza, Executive Director of the BOE. “We’ve been working closely with our partners in the Secretary of State’s Office and the General Assembly for months to ensure every eligible Rhode Island voter has convenient, safe, and secure options to cast their ballot.”
Rapoza noted that BOE will have a staff of more than 50 people working on election night and election week to process and count all ballots.
“Once all ballots have been cast by the November 3rd at 8 p.m. deadline, the Board of Elections is ready to efficiently process and count vote totals and report results to the public as quickly as possible,” he said.
For those concerned about their mail ballot being counted, a tracking system has been implemented. In Burrillville, 2,243 were mailed out, with 1,767 turned in. Voters can be tracked their mail ballot by logging in to the Secretary of States website at https://vote.sos.ri.gov/ and can likely still correct any issues in time to have their ballot counted.
Martin notes it’s all part of an efficient system put in place during a unique voting year that could see use during future voting cycles. The emergency in-person system, she noted, expediates the voting process and can help to eliminate lines – even at a small building like the American Legion Hall with limited capacity.
“Yesterday was a really wet day and unfortunately, a lot of people had to wait outside,” Martin told NRI NOW on Friday. “The line actually snaked through the parking lot for a little while.”
Still, she noted, “It’s quick. It has made the lines move so much more quickly.”
Although the Town Hall and Town Hall Annex are closed on November 3, the Burrillville Board of Canvassers will be available for any elections business. The doors will be open and staff will be available to answer the phones. Those with questions are instructed to call 568-4300 x180 or send an email to elections@burrillville.org.
