City Clerk flags unique voter IDs to prevent multiple ballots from being processed if returned

A small number of registered voters, approximately 2,500 out of 303,000 ballots mailed, were sent two ballots for the April 6 General Municipal Election. This was caused due to a technical glitch in the transmission of data to the ballot printing vendor.

Each of the ballot packets has a unique city voter identifier. The City Clerk knows exactly who was issued the duplicates and has flagged those in the system to ensure that only the first ballot received will be processed for counting if a voter were to return both ballots.

The duplicate ballots were sent to voters, coincidentally, in the 18-25-year age group and across all six City Council districts. If you received two ballots, please vote either of the two ballots and destroy the other.

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The voter management system is in place to track each ballot sent and the status of each ballot. It is not unusual for a voter to get more than one ballot for a variety of reasons.  For example, a change of address or if a voter does not receive their mailed ballot. In these cases, there are measures in place to ensure only one ballot is counted.

"We have many safeguards in place such as each voter having a unique city voter identifier and signature verification to ensure each registered voter may vote only once in this election," says Sarah Johnson, City of Colorado Springs City Clerk.

In the April 6, 2021 General Municipal Election, voters in each district will select one new City Council member to represent their district. Voters city-wide will also decide on one ballot issue. Ballots must be returned by 7 p.m. on April 6. For a list of City Council candidates and ballot drop off locations visit coloradosprings.gov/elections.

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