Wyoming House Considers Bills for Hand-Counting Ballots Amid Election-Related Legislation
As the Wyoming House of Representatives reviews a variety of election-related bills, several proposals are calling for increased use of hand-counting ballots during elections, Wyoming News Now reports.
Among these, three bills have drawn particular attention, including one that has already failed to progress.
House Bill 217, titled “Random hand count audits of election results,” was introduced to authorize the Secretary of State to select a random precinct for a hand-count audit following elections. However, this bill was dismissed by the House Appropriations Committee on Thursday after concerns were raised regarding its potential strain on county resources. Fremont County Clerk Julie Freese noted the significant time and staff required for recounting ballots. For instance, a recount of over 34,000 ballots in Natrona County took more than eight hours to complete with 17 staff members, costing approximately $2,500. The bill faced pushback from county clerks, including Mary Lankford, lobbyist for the Wyoming County Clerks Association, who suggested extending the time for recounts from one week to 30 days to accommodate the work involved.
Despite the setback of HB 217, another proposal, House Bill 232, titled “Elections-hand counting for recounts,” has moved forward. The bill, which passed its third reading in the House, requires an automatic hand recount in federal, statewide, and legislative races where the margin of victory is 2% or less in a county. A 1% margin for statewide races would trigger hand recounts in all 23 counties. The bill also offers the option of a hand or machine recount for local races with a 2% margin. Rep. Jeremy Haroldson, who introduced HB 232, acknowledged concerns about overburdening county clerks but emphasized the importance of addressing public concerns over election integrity.
In contrast, House Bill 215, introduced by Rep. Scott Smith, seeks to ban the use of electronic voting machines entirely. The bill would establish a hand-counting system for all elections, effective July 1, with an exception for individuals with disabilities who would still be allowed to use electronic machines as mandated by the Help America Vote Act. This bill is set for discussion in the House Corporations, Elections, and Political Subdivisions Committee on Friday.
Opponents of HB 232 and HB 215 argue that hand-counting ballots increases the risk of human error and is more costly and time-consuming compared to machine counting. Civics307 blogger Gail Symons criticized the bills, suggesting that they address a non-existent problem and may create more complications. Similarly, Marissa Carpio, policy director for the Equality State Policy Center, pointed to a University of Wyoming study showing that 94% of Wyoming residents trust the state’s election system, suggesting that doubts about election integrity are driven more by messaging than by legitimate concerns.
One point of focus in recent discussions was a ballot-counting issue in Weston County during the 2024 general election, which is still under investigation. The situation, involving an undervote for one candidate due to a ballot misprint, prompted the Secretary of State’s Office to conduct an audit. Freese explained that the voting machines functioned as intended, ensuring that only valid ballots were counted while rejecting those with errors.
