Countywide voting could become permanent

Commissioners approved submitting a proposal to make countywide voting permanent during Monday’s regular meeting.

A public hearing was held with nothing but positive statements on the voting, which was done for the first time during November’s general election. Counties that opt for countywide voting can do so on a provisionary basis for the first time to check if there are any problems before asking the Secretary of State’s office to make it permanent, which is what the county decided to do.

Former Jack County Republican Party Chair Sharon Van Baale said that while things went fine and she is in favor of it, she was concerned about hackable information and asked if the county could print paper ballots if needed.

“It’s a lot easier to get voters out (when they can vote anywhere in the county) and that’s important to have voters out, particularly in a non-presidential election,” Van Baale said. 

Van Baale was told that only the voter list is on the internet and everything else is not online and wouldn’t affect voting.

Jacksboro City Manager Mike Smith said he had heard of no issues, complaints or concerns but said countywide voting makes things much more user-friendly.

County Clerk Vanessa James, who is in charge of voting, said things went well from her perspective and she has received a lot of positive feedback.

To read the complete article, see the Dec. 22 edition of the Herald-Gazette.