It’s Wednesday morning, less than a week away from Election Day. The drive-up ballot drop off for Billings has been in operation for just a few hours.
“The first thing this morning was very slow but we were located on the other side of the parking lot. But they just moved us over here and it has picked up,” said Simon Harper, one of three elections workers manning the drive through ballot drop off at the MetraPark fairgrounds, near the county election office’s new location.
The ballot drop- off will be staffed 8am to 6pm through this Friday and then again on Monday. On election day it will be staffed 7am to 8pm.
Yellowstone County Election Administrator Dayna Causby described the service available at the drive up location.
“Voters don’t even have to get out of their cars to give their ballots over to one of the election workers and they go straight into the ballot box,” Causby said.
The election office moved into Cedar Hall this summer, leaving behind the county courthouse construction, giving the staff and the army of election workers ample room to log every ballot received, check the voter’s signature and securely store all those ballots until they are counted.
As the election gets ever closer, Causby said voters need to return the ballot in person, either to the election office or to a ballot drop off.
“We have to in Montana have the ballot in for us to be able to count it. So it has to be in hand by 8pm on election day,” emphasized Causby.
And there’s election worker Simon Harper’s invitation....
“Come and visit. We’d love to see you,” he smiled.
