PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — With just three weeks until the primary elections, preparations are already ramping up across Palm Beach County as election officials work to reassure voters that every ballot will be counted accurately.
WATCH BELOW:
From testing voting machines to recruiting poll workers, the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office says extensive safeguards are already in place ahead of the August 18 primary.
WPTV's Joel Lopez was at the Supervisor of Elections office Monday to see just how accurate they are.
The testing process, known as the public logic and accuracy test, allows election staff to publicly verify that voting equipment is correctly reading ballots before Election Day.
“It's an opportunity for us to publicly test the equipment to make sure that when you fill in an oval a particular way that the machine is reading it accurately," said Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link explained.
Election staff created 38,000 mock ballots with different selections and ran them through voting machines to ensure the final count matched the ballots cast.
If any discrepancies appear, officials say the machine is immediately removed from service.
“If it matches, we're good, if it doesn't we go back to which machine is incorrect and that one will be taken out of commission for the election,” Link said.
According to Link, Monday's testing results came back accurate.
The process is open to the public, a move election officials hope helps increase confidence in the voting system and ease concerns some voters may have about election equipment.
“The more testing they can do the better,” said Rich Raphael, who was dropping off his ballot at the Supervisor of Elections Office. “I want to know that if I vote that the vote is going to count.”
Election staff say they’ve already tested more than 1,100 machines that will be used at polling locations across the county.
“I think it's very important cause it shows there are checks in place to make sure everything is running smoothly,” said Greenacres resident Shari Murnane while dropping off her mail-in ballot.
Beyond the machines themselves, staffing polling places is another major focus ahead of Election Day.
After receiving a viewer tip claiming there was “a real shortage of people signing up to be Poll Workers,” Lopez asked election officials whether staffing levels were becoming a concern.
“Not yet, not yet,” Link responded.
Still, she acknowledged the office is currently trying to recruit additional workers as Election Day approaches.
“We are actively recruiting and trying to get more so I wouldn't say we've reached the concern level yet if we get another week or so in and we're still short we'll start to be a little more aggressive with it,” she said.
The elections office says that during its largest elections, more than 5,000 trained election workers help serve voters across Palm Beach County.
Officials say those workers are trained to ensure “every voter is treated with professionalism dignity and respect,” while the office also partners with schools and community organizations to expand voter education and strengthen trust in the election process.
As voters begin making plans for how they’ll cast their ballots, election officials are encouraging residents not to wait until the last minute.
“What would be your message to the voters out there?” Lopez asked.
“Make sure that you vote, make sure that your voice is heard,” Murnane said, while also encouraging people to research candidates before casting a ballot.
Link’s advice is simple: make a voting plan early.
Whether residents choose to vote early, vote by mail or vote in person on Election Day, she says preparation matters — especially because some polling locations have changed due to redistricting.
“If you plan to vote on election day, double check which location you have to be at,” officials said.
Voters planning to cast ballots by mail must request their ballot by 5 p.m. on Aug. 6.
Election officials also reminded voters they must renew vote-by-mail requests, even if they’ve voted by mail in previous elections.
