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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - It's present been implicit a period since Election Day, but vexation implicit California's dilatory ballot number is inactive apical of mind.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber spoke to reporters and answered questions during a property league connected Wednesday.
"The reply is simple, we instrumentality the clip to get it right," Weber said.
In conscionable a fewer days connected Friday, Dec. 13, California volition officially certify predetermination results. By now, region predetermination officials person already sent their results to the state.
Weber addressed disapproval that the ballot number took excessively long, and blamed authorities legislators for each the rules they person to follow.
"If you make authorities and you make caller rules and regulations that marque it much clip consuming to nutrient it, to decorativeness a ballot, to get it done, to get it turned successful and to beryllium counted, past that besides past becomes astir counterproductive successful immoderate ways," she said.
She said this process enactment into instrumentality by the legislature, makes it instrumentality longer than different states, and it's not those idiosyncratic elections offices aren't putting successful capable work.
"People say, well, you've got technology. Yes, we do. But past we besides person a tremendous manual process that occurs with verifying each ballot. And if we decided not to verify ballots and not to look astatine signatures, past we'd person each of those who assertion we're letting immoderate and everybody vote, rise hellhole astir voting," she added.
Weber besides noted that California has a higher elector turnout complaint than different states, which adds to the slower ballot count.
In Fresno, County Clerk and Registrar of Voters James Kus said their bureau is presently moving connected a recount for Kingsburg Joint Union High School District Measure K. It's the 2nd recount they've worked connected this predetermination cycle, including the contention for the part 2 spot with the Laguna Irrigation District.
Kus mostly agrees with Weber's comments and added helium sees the impacts of authorities laws firsthand.
"California instrumentality truly favors information by the voter," Kus said.
Kus besides said immoderate caller laws from the legislature should equilibrium the outgo of getting things done rapidly with what's just to voters.
"If you privation results faster, realistically, determination person to beryllium limits connected immoderate of those other ways that ballots are accepted," helium said.
Kus besides added this year, they had astir 5,000 same-day elector registrations. He said allowing those registrations, portion ineligible and adjuvant to galore voters, conscionable slows down the process of counting ballots.
"If aforesaid time was restricted oregon limited, possibly not connected Election Day, that would person saved america a batch of time, and we could person saved- we could person gotten results retired faster due to the fact that of that. But that would person disenfranchised perchance thousands of voters. So, determination is that tradeoff. There's ever going to beryllium that tradeoff," Kus said.
Kus said erstwhile the recounts are finalized they volition adhd those results to the Fresno County predetermination website.
