Changes to the city of Laurel's election process are being re-evaluated for their effectiveness after the 2011 mayoral and City Council elections.

The Board of Election Supervisors held a public hearing Jan. 18 to get feedback on the changes, which included having two polling locations instead of one, three days of early voting, no-excuse absentee voting and voting for council seats by ward.

At its next meeting, which is still unscheduled, the board will discuss any additional changes that need to be made to resolve any issues that arose. The board will eventually make recommendations that will go before the City Council for approval.

Three people who spoke at the Jan. 18 hearing agreed city officials did a good job executing the changes. However, they all had some suggestions.

Ward 1 resident and former City Council member Rick Wilson said he participated in early voting in 2011.

"I think it's a great opportunity," he said. "I just don't know if it's worth the work."

The 233 residents who participated in early voting had to use hand-written paper ballots instead of voting machines.

Wilson said he believes better advertising of the no-excuse absentee voting could serve the same function as the early voting, and the city could save time and money by not having to keep the Municipal Center open and election officials on hand for the three days of early voting. In 2011, 66 absentee ballots were cast.

Overall, Wilson said he was disappointed that more people didn't come out to vote.

"I'd like to see a lot bigger turnout," he said. November's election drew nearly 1,900 of Laurel's eligible voters.

Jim McCeney, also a Ward 1 resident, said he does not like the change that required residents to only vote for council candidates running in their ward or at-large.

"We're still a small town, and it makes sense to me that since we are as small as we are and the turnout is as small is it is, that we should vote for all the representatives on the council," he said.

However, McCeney noted he does support having two polling locations, one in each ward.

Kim Rau, clerk to the Board of Election Supervisors, said the two polling locations "definitely will stay."

The third person who spoke at the hearing was Ward 2 resident Valerie Cunningham, who unsuccessfully ran for mayor. She made several suggestions, mostly aimed at reducing voter confusion.

For example, Cunningham said, there were inconsistencies in directions given to people who showed up to vote in the wrong ward.

"Some people were sent to their appropriate ward; some people were allowed to vote on site," she said.

Cunningham said there was also confusion among voters who were asked to fill out provisional ballots as to whether their vote would be counted.

In addition, Cunningham asked the board if there were any regulations it could implement that would prevent the "bullying" that occurred throughout the 2011 campaign season.

Elections chair John Kish and Ward 1 Judge William Wellford, the two board members who were present at the hearing, said they will be looking at changes to avoid some of the negative campaigning that occurred in the last election. They also said they will be looking to make some changes to the city's campaign finance provisions, including tightening up restrictions on anonymous donations and standardizing reporting forms.

The board is still accepting public comments and suggestions on the elections process. Comments can be emailed to Rau at krau@laurel.md.us.