Over 100 Posey Co. absentee voters may need to vote again before Tuesday

POSEY COUNTY, Ind. (WFIE) - Officials in Posey Co. confirmed Friday that a maximum of 107 absentee ballots could be null and void.

The problem with the ballots is that the back of the absentee ballots may not have been signed by both parties, an election requirement.

With only 5 days until the next leaders are decided in Posey County, officials met Friday to rectify the problem.

“So they had a special meeting this morning and they’re going to start reaching out and calling these people that are on this list,” said Ed Adams, Chairman of the Posey Co. Democratic Party.

According to officials, the area of affected voters is not condensed to one area, it’s all-around the county.

“It’s going to be close, but I think there will be enough time for the voters to get their vote perfected,” said Greg Newman, Chairman of the Posey Co. Republican Party.

A statement from County Clerk Kay Kilgore says that :

“It was brought to the attention of the Election Board that there was an inadvertent error affecting a maximum of 107 mail-in ballots or less that were mailed without the bi-partisan initials on the back of the ballots. All the voters potentially affected have been identified and are being contacted.

It is our goal that no voter is penalized due to this human error so we have been in consultation with the Indiana Election Division and steps are being taken to allow all of the voters potentially affected to perfect their ballots prior to the 6:00 p.m. Election Day deadline.

Any OFFICIAL REPLACEMENT BALLOTS that are requested by the voter will replace their previous ballot.”

“What the election board has done today is basically saying, okay, we found a problem, let’s address it, and try to resolve just as fast as we can,” said Newman.

Both party leaders in the county were present in Friday’s meeting. Both leaders boast a long resumé of elections they’ve been involved in, some where it came down to the last few votes.

“We have had close races in Posey County in the past but, I’m still confident in the process and that there will be an opportunity for this to be corrected before the vote is counted,” said Newman.

They both know that one vote could very well decide an election outcome.

“Every vote counts, and the process we have in place here, I’ve been doing this for a long time, I’m very comfortable with our process here with the checks and balances they have in place,” Adams said.

If you’re affected, the county will be reaching out to you via phone.

When they do, they’ll give you a list of four options to rectify the matter and solidify your vote.

For more information on polling locations and voting information in Indiana, click here.

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