MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WIAT) — From poll workers to probate judges to the Secretary of State, thousands are preparing to ensure Alabama’s primary elections, now two weeks away, run smoothly and are free of fraud.
“We view elections as a zero-fail mission, we don’t get a second chance to conduct an election,” Montgomery County Probate Judge JC Love said.
Love says everyone involved in election day has been meeting for weeks to make sure everything is set for May 24.
“That really helps make sure everyone’s on the same page, we know what each other’s doing to make sure we minimize any hiccups we have as possible,” Love said.
In these final 14 days, Love says they’re testing the voting machines. He says though some are electronic, none in the state connect to the internet and they all take paper ballots.
“No information is stored on this machine. You get a printed blank ballot, put it in the machine, it pulls up the races you’re going to vote on for your precinct, prints it out and puts it in a tabulator,” Love said.
Love says by the end of the night, every ballot is accounted for.
According to the Secretary of State’s Office, between April 2015 to September 2021, the office processed 1,618 voter fraud complaints. In total, there were six convictions over those six years.
Secretary of State John Merrill wants voters to know the process is protected.
“They need to rest comfortably in knowing that Alabama has the most secure, transparent and accountable process in the United States. That’s not something that we say. That’s something that’s been said about us by the Heritage Foundation, by the Concerned Women for Conservative Government, and by the University of Southern California in Los Angeles,” Merrill said.
Merrill says months of work have been put into administering this upcoming election. All that’s left is for citizens to vote.
“If you don’t cast your ballot, then your voice cannot be heard,” Merrill said.
While the voter registration deadline passed on May 9, the absentee application mail-in deadline is one week from today.
