Commissioner Matt Schulte was the lone no vote. He sided with the concerns of the residents who spoke out. “I don’t see how someone can sit and listen to all this public testimony about election security and not be moved. Concerns shared by the public are clear, drop boxes are rife for potential abuse.”
(Chase Porter, KLIN News)
Lancaster County currently has one drop box for it’s more than 200,000 registered voters. That will soon change after the Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved the installation of four permanent boxes prior to the next election.
Those boxes would be located at Gere, Eisely, Walt and Anderson libraries in all four quadrants of the City. “Accessibility of drop box locations in Lancaster County need to improve,” Election Commissioner Todd Wiltgen told board members.
During the last election in May, Wiltgen says almost 18,000 early voters used the drop box at the election commissioner’s office on 46th Street and it created traffic problems. Several residents showed up to voice their opposition to the idea, including Wayne Smith.
“The boxes will not be supervised. Drop boxes open up another venue for ballot stuffing and will make our elections less secure.” Wiltgen pointed out that the boxes will comply with a state law passed last year that improves voter security. He says the drop boxes will be secured in concrete and locked.