Baltimore elections chief Armstead B.C. Jones Sr. intends to post signs at the city's nearly 300 precincts for voters having trouble casting ballots during November's general election.
Jones outlined his plans before the Board of Elections Thursday, as officials continued to dissect problems from the April primary — some 400 election judges failed to show up to work, polling places opened late and unverified provisional ballots were counted.
"We're going to focus on lessons learned for the general election," said Jones, who added that he looks for opportunities to improve the process after every city election.
Jones also said he is working with the State Board of Elections to bring in an expert to organize the city's election warehouse that one state official said left her "appalled."
His comments came during the city board's monthly meeting, which lasted about an hour. The board did not accept public testimony at the meeting, citing time constraints.
The city's administration of the election has been scrutinized in the weeks since the April 26 primary. The state board took the unusual step of decertifying the city's results and concerned voters have filed a federal lawsuit calling for a new election.
State Sen. Catherine E. Pugh was named the Democratic nominee for mayor during the contest, topping former Mayor Sheila Dixon by about 2,400 votes. About 133,000 Democrats voted.
State elections administrator Linda H. Lamone has pledged to help the city recruit judges and offered to send an expert this month to help the city handle the logistics of operating its warehouse.
Much of the disorganization, Jones said, was caused by the new equipment the state sent, cramming the space and causing confusion when officials went to put the file cabinets and other equipment away.
"We're going to get it organized like it needs to be," Jones said. He said he was working with state officials on the details.
Earlier this week, Jones appeared before a state Senate committee to discuss the election. He told the committee he hopes to recruit an additional 800 judges for the general election.
Jones has said 1,700 of the 2,100 judges who had been trained to staff the polls showed up to work on the primary election. He has pointed to that as the primary culprit for problems, coupled with the state's new paper ballot system. Previously, Maryland voters used touch screens to cast ballots.
On Thursday, Jones told the city board that recruitment would be key to the success of November's election, but he did not outline plans for how to go about finding new election judges. Chief judges are paid $225 for working Election Day, while other judges receive $165.
"We need to make that recruitment work, because if not, we're not going to staff these polling places," Jones said.
Linda Eberhart, a Dixon campaign volunteer and concerned voter, said she was disappointed that the board did not ask Jones for more details on his plans.
"They never talked about how they're going to recruit," she said. "How do we make it better in November?"
Eberhart had wanted to speak at the meeting, but was not granted time to offer testimony. The board said that an opportunity will be provided at next month's meeting, and that they also accept feedback by email and other methods.
Eleanor Wang, president of the board, commended Jones and his staff for their performance during the election and in the weeks since. She noted some of the complications associated with the election, including that the state switched to the new paper ballot system all at once rather than phasing it in.
Baltimore wasn't the only jurisdiction to face problems during the primary, she said. Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Montgomery and Prince George's counties all had similar issues, Wang said.
"For the size of our jurisdiction and the record turnout that we had, the difficulties were magnified," Wang said.
Board member Lawrence C.Cager Jr. said he witnessed problems at a polling place where election judges could not scan some ballots. After examining the equipment and ballots, he saw the workers were tearing the sheets in the wrong spot.
"That is not a malicious act, not an act of purpose," he said. "That is someone making an error."
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