Santa Clara County election officials investigate ballots found near Highway 17
SANTA CLARA COUNTY -- Officials with the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters confirmed Sunday they are investigating a number of ballots that were found alongside Highway 17.
A Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters (ROV) spokesperson said an individual reported finding ballots from the November 8th election were found near Highway 17 on Friday. According to reports, the ballots turned up in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Election officials said the ballots were found along with other mail that was not election related, including letters and parcels, and that it appeared the ballots went missing while they were in the possession of the United States Postal Service before they could be delivered to the Registrar of Voters. Officials said they were unsure exactly how many ballots were involved, but that it appeared that one to two dozen ballots were found.
"The ROV is very concerned about this unfortunate incident and looks forward to working with the USPS to resolve it as quickly as possible on behalf of the voters," the released statement said.
Officials said there currently was no indication the found ballots were taken from any vote center or ballot box. Election officials notified the USPS so they could recover the mail and investigate this incident. Once postal authorities have concluded their investigation, the ROV will take possession of the ballots and review election law to determine whether they can be included in the official election results.
Officials reminded voters that they can track their ballots online at the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters website to confirm that they were received by our office and counted. However, officials noted that as they are still processing the hundreds of thousands of mail ballots that were returned on Election Day, many ballots may not show as received until after Nov. 13th. Voters who have questions about their ballot status are encouraged to contact Registrar of Voters office.