Sacramento County officials dispel election rumors

Sacramento County officials held a press conference on Thursday with the hope of reassuring voters that the local elections process is safe and anonymous.

County Supervisors Phil Serna and Patrick Kennedy spoke in a room where county workers sorted vote-by-mail ballots. 

Serna said the counting process is secure and anonymous, despite false information from residents who’ve spoken out at public meetings. 

“Every ballot is a paper ballot that someone marks and in no way shape or form is your vote connected to the internet,” he said. 

Elections Office Spokesperson Ken Casparis also talked about how each ballot is kept secret, which is mandated by the state and federal government. 

“There is no way to know who voted in what way because your ballot envelope and your ballot gets separated before it goes into the tabulator,” he said. 

Kennedy also brought up that several constituents demanded recently that the ballots be counted by hand. 

“A hand count would not only be impractical in a county this size,” he said. “It would significantly delay the results and most importantly, it’s illegal under California elections code.”

The office also only allows red pens in areas where ballots are kept and counted, which the ballot machines can’t read. That prevents county workers from making changes to ballots. 

Kennedy also said that county officials have been in contact with law enforcement about safety plans. 

“Our law enforcement will be prepared for anything that comes up. We've had those discussions — the board has — with the sheriff, also having the sheriffs working with the chief of police,” he said. 

Casparis also said the office has contingency plans for a variety of issues, including broken voting machines and major weather events. 

He also said the county sheriff has an office next door and is prepared to intervene if there’s a threat of violence in the office.