OREGON CITY, Ore. — A mechanical failure of a ballot-sorting machine is hindering the counting of votes in Clackamas County, a densely populated area near Portland, known for its significant congressional race this year. The problem arose about a week following the mailing of ballots to voters in mid-October, as reported by election officials.
The ballot sorter has occasionally halted its operation, which complicates the handling of large volumes of ballots that need continuous processing. This malfunction has also made it challenging for voters to receive timely updates on the status of their ballots. Efforts for repair are underway, with representatives from the manufacturing company onsite to address the issue.
County Clerk Catherine McMullen, who was elected last year, indicated in an interview that the ballot processing is lagging by “about a day behind where we want to be.” Clackamas County plays a pivotal role in U.S. House District 5, which is currently a tightly contested race as a Republican incumbent strives to retain her seat, one she narrowly acquired from Democrats in the previous election.
In 2022, Clackamas County faced significant challenges when a printing error on primary ballots pushed the release of results back by nearly two weeks. Tens of thousands of ballots containing unclear barcodes were rejected by the counting machine, prompting a shift of nearly 200 county employees to assist with vote tabulation.
This year, incumbent U.S. Representative Lori Chavez-DeRemer is in a fierce re-election contest within a district that favored President Joe Biden over Donald Trump by nearly 10 percentage points in the 2020 elections. Her opponent is state Rep. Janelle Bynum, representing the Democratic Party.
Currently, election workers are adapting to the situation by using hand scanners to process incoming ballots—a method employed in smaller counties across Oregon and one that was last utilized in Clackamas County back in 2015. Officials have assured that the acceptance of mailed ballots and those deposited in drop boxes continues at a steady pace, and ballots are being processed in the order they are received.
As of Wednesday evening, elections officials reported that nearly 83,000 ballots have successfully been processed.
