30,000 ballots on backlog: Election mail delays in Lorain County blamed on vendor

Fewer than half of the absentee ballots requested by Lorain County voters had been mailed out as of Thursday morning, nine long days after they were supposed to be sent. Just 26,000 of the more than 63,000 that should have hit the mail Oct. 6 actually made it, Board of Elections Director Paul Adams confirmed. That left a backlog in excess of about 30,000 that were to be dropped at the U.S. Postal Service sorting center in Cleveland on Thursday afternoon. An additional 7,000 and change — some of the latest that voters have applied for — are expected to go out next week, though which day remains unclear. "We're incredibly frustrated with having to deal with this," Adams said. Have election questions? Here are some answers. Lorain County elections officials were in conference calls until late Wednesday tracking down the source of delivery delays, he said. A little before 8 p.m., they got the admission they were seeking: According to Adams, blame rests with Midwest Direct, a company hired to print and mail ballots. Midwest Direct is contracted by at least 20 of Ohio's 88 counties, including Cuyahoga and others in Northeast Ohio, to assist with election mail. It's been notoriously hard to reach about delivery issues in the past couple weeks, Adams said. There was never a complete communication shutdown, but Midwest Direct spent days dodging questions, he said. "To me, that's an unacceptable response." There's a silver lining. Adams said all ballots mailed out to voters are presorted by carrier route, so it should take only a day or two to reach their destinations. The Postal Service maintains delivery could take up to five days, however, which puts voters under the gun to get them filled out and returned. Increasingly restless Lorain County residents have been checking their mailboxes for days, but until Thursday the wait had been chalked up to the record number of ballots requested. In an email conversation with one voter, Lorain County Board of Elections Absentee Coordinator Tim Fergus said delivery waits were due to "sheer volume," and the county's vendor was processing ballot packets as quickly as possible while also keeping them secure. "The printer has processed some ballots for each of the counties including Lorain and Cuyahoga but not all at this point as they work through this huge volume," Fergus said. "As Cuyahoga has some voters receiving ballots, Lorain does too, so far in the cities of Avon, Avon Lake, Elyria and some townships and the others will follow." Slow delivery of absentee ballots was expected, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said Thursday in a Q&A session streamed live on social media. Boards of elections across the state are working as quickly as possible to fulfill a record 2.5 million absentee ballot requests, he said. It's normal for about a quarter of Ohio's ballots to be absentee, LaRose said. Early in the pandemic, he warned that as many as half in the 2020 general election could be cast by mail. At this point in the 2016 presidential election, only 1.2 million ballots had been cast, he said. "So we're going to set records this year, and that's a great thing because Ohioans know it's easy to vote by mail," LaRose said, attempting to allay fears about the reliability of the election system. LaRose, who acknowledged that some vendors are running behind, has become a political target in this contentious election year. State Sen. Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, sent a letter to him on Thursday, seeking answers about Midwest Direct. "This vendor has also failed to be responsive throughout this potential crisis, leading to widespread confusion among local elections officials and voters that continues to unravel," she said. Other Democrats piled on the pressure, including U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown and Reps. Marcy Kaptur, Tim Ryan, Joyce Beatty and Marcia Fudge, who challenged LaRose's ties to Hans Von Spakovsky, an attorney accused of leading voter suppression efforts. "All Ohioans must be confident that — no matter how they vote — you and your office will take the steps necessary to ensure that all Ohioans are able to freely and fairly cast their ballots," the Ohio lawmakers wrote to LaRose. "We are concerned that Mr. Von Spakovsky's influence over policy decisions coming from your office has undermined the confidence and trust Ohioans placed in your ability to fulfill your duties." Their complaints focused on LaRose's opposition to expanding the number of absentee ballot drop boxes allowed in Ohio. Currently, each county is allowed to have only one. "Three separate courts have already handed down rulings affirming your authority to allow multiple drop boxes," Antonio said. "You have refused to follow it. The ability of thousands of Ohioans to exercise their constitutional right to vote may well sit at your feet." In the Q&A session, LaRose defended the limits placed on drop boxes, which have become increasingly important due to concerns about both mail delivery and COVID-19. He advanced his interpretation of state law and blasted the voting rights advocates that have won court cases against his office this fall. At the same time, he praised innovations such as Lorain County's new drive-thru drop-off location at the Board of Elections headquarters in Sheffield Township. The secretary of state also defended Ohioans' right to vote by mail, which he characterized as secure. LaRose, a Republican, appeared to take an indirect swipe at President Donald Trump by saying claims that voting by mail is anything but safe could be construed as voter suppression. "Ohioans know it's easy to vote. It's unfortunate that some have spread fear and really a level of misinformation about voting by mail," LaRose said. "I think that's irresponsible for people to do." Trump, who voted by mail himself, has consistently complained about mail-in ballots, posting on Twitter that they would lead to "a Rigged Election." "There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent," he tweeted in May. "Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed. The Governor of California is sending Ballots to millions of people, anyone....." LaRose said he's working to ensure the U.S. Postal Service delivers election mail in a timely manner. The USPS has made it clear that election mail is its top priority, he said, and he's vowed to hold the mail service accountable on several promises. The agency has committed to adding overtime shifts and keeping workers on the job as long as needed to handle daily election mail volume, he said. All election mail will be handled as first class, even if it lacks the proper postage. However, LaRose said delivery could be slower if the right postage isn't used. The USPS is carrying out "all clear" procedures each night at its sorting facilities, he said. Inspectors are walking the floors, using flashlights to look inside machines, hunting for bins with overlooked election mail and making sure it all gets on the trucks. The service has also promised to keep mail in-state, instead of sending it to sorting centers in Detroit and other hubs. Using out-of-state facilities can save money, but adds to delivery times, LaRose said. Contact Jason Hawk at (440) 329-7122 or news@lcnewspapers.com.