State & Local Government Policy, Business and Technology

How a Virginia Election Official Prepares to Count Ballots

Governing: The citizens of Falls Church, Va., have been casting their ballots since mid-September. David Bjerke, the city’s director of elections, mailed out a requested 3,500 ballots on the first day the law allows. “Compare that to four years ago,” he says. “The first day I could mail ballots in 2016, I mailed 18.”

Falls Church voters are not alone. Nationwide, more than 90 million Americans had voted by the Saturday before the election, either by mail or in person. Virginia is one of several states that loosened election laws this year, making it easier to vote by mail. Even before COVID-19 upended the election process, five states already conducted their elections solely by mail. Only six others still require an approved excuse to vote absentee.

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