Maricopa County working around the clock to make sure Election Day goes smoothly

Maricopa County officials answered common election questions and shared data about early voting a day ahead of Election Day. (Photo by Brendon Pricco/Cronkite News)

PHOENIX – Voters have many questions about the 2024 general election. Whether or not their early ballot will be counted in time to questions on security at voting centers, Maricopa County is preparing for all of it.

Around 55% of total ballots will drop immediately after 8 p.m. on election night, which is on par with previous elections in Maricopa County. For those who participated in early voting wondering when their ballot will be reported, around 75% of returns from early ballots will be available after 8 p.m.

As of the day before the election, about 2.2 million pages have been processed, which equates to about 1.1 million voters, as there are two pages per ballot. Almost 4,000 temporary workers have been hired to help with the election process.

“We consistently receive early ballots,” Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer said Tuesday. “We hope to move as fast as we can. We know that people care about every single part of this process. We will not cut corners.”

There are 159 audit boards overseeing the ballot counting process during this election – more than in previous years. In 2020, there were 70 boards, and in 2022, there were 65 boards. Each board includes members of the major parties.

Maricopa County is working “around the clock” to process ballots. There are three shifts throughout the day: 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 5 p.m. to midnight and midnight to 6 a.m.

There are 246 voting centers for in-person voting, open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. There are 10% more voting centers compared to the 2022 election.

Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates is proud of all the options people have to vote, and Gates said turnout is similar to 2020. As of the day before the election, Maricopa County has received about 1.5 million ballots, with that number expected to hit about 2.1 million ballots by Election Day.

Over 1.4 million signatures have been verified. About 27,000 signatures have been sent to be cured, which is the process of resolving any potential problems with signatures from early voting. About 15,000 of those signatures have been cured so far.

“It’s very important to us that people have faith and confidence in how we run elections,” Gates said.

Part of that faith could include security at voting centers, and Maricopa County Sheriff Russ Skinner said the agency’s posture hasn’t changed.

“We have partnered and planned with all the law enforcement in the Valley,” Skinner said. “We’ve been planning this like any major security event.”

Skinner said law enforcement resources and staff will be available at the tabulation center and polling places to handle security needs. Security will be available for “weeks on end if needed.” Online threats, inside and outside of the United States will be monitored, and any misinformation will be “aggressively reported,” he said.

“We continue to prepare for everything,” Skinner said. “We can’t necessarily predict everything. This is not new to Maricopa County.”