Maricopa County Recorder: November midterms will go more smoothly than the August primary

PHOENIX (KSAZ) -- Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes assures the County Board of Supervisors that the November election will go more smoothly than the primary.

During the primary, which happened in August, dozens of polling places did not open on time, due to technical glitches. After dozens of polling places reported problems opening on primary election day, the Supervisors want assurances there won't be any glitches for the November election. The Board of Supervisors called in an auditor to review the performance of the County Recorder, who made suggestions on ensuring there is adequate staffing and training, so there aren't problems on Election Day.

Fontes says that has been taken care of. He told the Board of Supervisors that all election work will be done by county employees, and no outside contractors will be hired.

"Well, the biggest change is trusting our own folks setting up for us," said Fontes. "So we are confident the folks who do the setup on Monday, our employees, will do the job well."

"I believe the Recorder is focused on important things, but without further consultation with our auditor team, he can be doing more testing," said Maricopa County Supervisor Steve Chucri.

The recorder says county employee volunteers are ready to pitch in if needed, and the technology should work more smoothly this time around.

The Supervisors, however, are not quite convinced.

"What this is coming down, auditor and Recorder. is detail. Loud and clear," said Chucri. "Details are what is going to dictate successful election on November 6."

"My offer is open," said Fontes. "They can look at training. Send staff to our training. Like I said, every marine was a rifleman when I was in the Marine Corps. These guys could jump in and roll up their sleeves as well. That would be kind of nice."

FOX 10 has received reports that some people have not received their mail-in ballots. Fontes says that is normal when you mail out 1.6 million ballots, and some will arrive later than others.

Voter Resources - Maricopa County
Provisional Ballot Status - https://recorder.maricopa.gov/provisionalballotstatus/
Voter Registration Lookup - https://recorder.maricopa.gov/earlyvotingballot/voterregistrationlookup.aspx
Early Voting Ballot Status Inquiry - https://recorder.maricopa.gov/earlyvotingballot/earlyvotingballotstatus.aspx
Hotline for voting questions - (602) 506-1511

Voter Resources - Statewide
Arizona Secretary of State's Office - https://voter.azsos.gov/VoterView/Home.do