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Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 1:00 PM BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Maricopa County, Arizona (and the Boards of Directors of the Flood Control District, Library District, Stadium District, Improvement Districts and/or Board of Deposit) "The mission of Maricopa County is to provide regional leadership and fiscally responsible, necessary public services to its residents so they can enjoy living in healthy and safe communities” Board Members Jack Sellers, Chairman, District 1 Thomas Galvin, Vice Chairman, District 2 Bill Gates, District 3 Clint Hickman, District 4 Steve Gallardo, District 5 County Manager Jen Pokorski Clerk of the Board Juanita Garza Meeting Location Supervisors' Auditorium 205 W Jefferson, Phoenix, AZ 85003 BOARD OF SUPERVISORS The Board of Supervisors of Maricopa County, Phoenix, Arizona, convened in Special Session at 1:00 PM on Thursday, November 21, 2024, in the Supervisors’ Auditorium, 205 W Jefferson, Phoenix, AZ 85003, with the following members present: Jack Sellers, Chairman, District 1; Thomas Galvin, Vice Chairman, District 2; Bill Gates, Supervisor, District 3; Clint Hickman, Supervisor, District 4; Steve Gallardo, Supervisor, District 5. Also present: Juanita Garza, Clerk; Kelly Gardiner, Minutes Coordinator (remote); Jen Pokorski, County Manager; Brooke Worcester, Legal Counsel. ACTION 1. CANVASS THE RETURNS FOR THE NOVEMBER 5, 2024 GENERAL ELECTION Canvass the election returns for the November 5, 2024, General Election in accordance with the Official Results prepared by Maricopa County Elections, A Department of the Board of Supervisors. Maricopa County Elections has prepared the Official Returns from all county precincts, declaring the vote for the General Election held on November 5, 2024. The Maricopa County Elections Department requests that the Board of Supervisors canvass these returns and approve the Official Canvass for this election pursuant to A.R.S. 16-642 through 16-645. The Board of Supervisors is required to canvass these returns within sixteen days following the election. The Official Canvass is on file with the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and retained in accordance with ASLAPR approved retention schedule. (C-21-25-020-X-00) Chairman Sellers welcomed everyone to the Special Meeting for the Board of Supervisors. He explained the purpose of the meeting was to perform the statutory duty of canvassing the returns for the 2024 General Election. Chairman Sellers introduced Scott Jarrett, Director of Election Day, and Zach Schira, Assistant County Manager. He said Mr. Jarrett would be presenting remotely and Mr. Schira was present at the meeting. Mr. Schira thanked the full-time staff, the unsung heroes, at Elections who have stuck with the department despite the adversity and challenges. He thanked the 4,000 temporary workers and their service to Maricopa County. Mr. Schira thanked the Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 2 of 10 Board for all their support that has resulted in six, smooth elections during the 2024 election cycle. He commented on the two-page ballot that, practically speaking, doubled the work for the staff. This aspect of a two-page ballot for the General Election has not been seen since 2006. Mr. Schira said despite this increase, the ballots were processed at a record-breaking rate. Mr. Jarrett thanked the Board for their time and the ability to present the Canvass remotely. He said the slide presentation was created to show the Board what occurred during the 2024 General Election. Mr. Jarrett reviewed the slide above and said the Registered Voter number had dropped since the 2020 Election and he attributed that to the efforts made to clean up the voter rolls. Mr. Jarrett reviewed the above slides and said the Voter Turnout number was high compared to prior General Elections. He spoke about the Turn Out numbers compared with other large counties and said we had the most, saying this was a testament to all Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 3 of 10 the voting options that are available to Arizona voters. Mr. Jarrett talked about the other statistics listed on the slides. Mr. Jarrett spoke about the importance of all voters having the ability to cast their ballot. He reviewed the numbers on the slide, showing the options. Chairman Sellers confirmed that the touch screen for disabled voters resulted in a paper ballot. Mr. Jarrett said 100% of voters’ ballots result in a paper ballot and he explained that process. Mr. Jarrett said he has not seen an Elections team (volunteers included) as dedicated as the ones that served on this election. The Staff and Training slide above was reviewed, and he commented on the variety of tasks that were required. He said the Party Observer volunteers did a great job. He talked about how smooth the election went due to the number of training sessions that were held. Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 4 of 10 Supervisor Hickman asked the Clerk if she knew how many people were accessing the meeting by live stream. The Clerk said approximately 40 people. Mr. Jarrett reviewed the Two Page Ballot slide, and he talked about the organization of each ballot/contest. He said there is a tremendous amount of effort that goes into preparing this size ballot. Mr. Schira reviewed the above slide that covered outreach and education that was offered to help instill confidence. Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 5 of 10 Mr. Schira talked about the variety of online resources (listed on the slide above) that were available to assist voters. He said the focus of this information had to do with voters’ participation in the election. Mr. Schira said he appreciated the local channels featuring Maricopa County webpages as a source of information on Election Day. Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 6 of 10 Mr. Jarrett reviewed the slide above and talked about the tremendous effort that is required to process the early ballots. He talked about signature verification, removing ballots from envelopes, and the curing process. Mr. Jarrett and Mr. Schira both commented on the employee participation that was necessary to get the ballots processed. Mr. Jarrett reviewed the slide above and said the 246 Vote Centers is the highest number ever in anticipation of Election Day voting. He reviewed the numbers seen on the slide and said the Vote Center model was appreciated and well utilized. Convenience was key and another new feature this election cycle was access to real time wait times so voters could choose what Vote Center to go to. Supervisor Gates said he appreciated the new “wait times information” feature that was available for Vote Centers. Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 7 of 10 Supervisor Gallardo asked how the number of Vote Centers was determined. Mr. Jarrett said the numbers are based on the number of potential voters. He said they utilize the heat maps, previous voter behavior, and the resources that were available. Vice Chairman Galvin asked how many of the Vote Centers were government offices? Mr. Jarrett said he did not have the exact number but said prior to the 2020, schools were used a lot and now schools are not wanting elections on the school grounds. He talked about the importance of consistency from Primary to General because the public liked to have the same location from one election to the next. Vice Chairman Galvin thanked Mr. Jarrett for his dedication to finding new voting locations. Mr. Jarrett reviewed the Election Night Returns slide and talked about the potential delay when considering the amount of time it might take voters to get through a two- page ballot. He also mentioned the new law that required counting the early-ballot envelopes before they leave the Vote Center. Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 8 of 10 On the slide above, Mr. Jarrett explained some of the strategies used to minimize problems with the two-page ballots. Mr. Jarrett said there is a lot of inaccurate information regarding the amount of time it takes to count the ballots. He referred to the chart above and concluded the ballots were counted faster than ever before, despite a two-page ballot. A conversation/discussion ensued about the details that surround the timing which included two-pages, the 79 contests, and the large volume of propositions that were put on the ballot by the Legislature. Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 9 of 10 Mr. Jarrett explained the Automatic Recount process as outlined on the slide. He said it had a very specific timeline that would be followed. The Canvass must happen first, then the three filing officers would go to court tomorrow, followed by a recount of all ballots cast. Comments from the Board followed: Supervisor Gallardo thanked Chairman Sellers and Supervisor Gates for their dedication during this election cycle. He said it takes a lot of effort to pull off a safe, secure, and accurate election with no disruptions. Supervisor Gates echoed his colleagues’ comments. He said there was great teamwork including the County Manager, Communications, and Legal Counsel. Supervisor Gates said on Election Day, misinformation was dashed quickly and that helped keep the process running smooth. Supervisor Hickman thanked the Chairman for his dedication. He said the election must have been acceptable because there were no people in the audience to complain. Supervisor Hickman talked about the process of elections and the many individuals and cooperation it requires. He said there were some issues, and he mentioned the late submission of voter registration forms. He questioned whether the public was working in cooperation with the County or simply trying to undermine the process. There was further discussion on the percentage of provisional ballots compared with historic numbers, with Mr. Schira and Mr. Jarrett contributing to the discussion. Supervisor Hickman thanked the many County people who were asked, at the last minute, to step in and assist in counting ballots and processing election information. Vice Chairman Galvin echoed his colleagues’ comments and thanked the entire County family. He also acknowledged the Sheriff’s Department and Security Services for helping to keep our community safe. He talked briefly about the proposal for election reform and said the stress and strain that accompanies this work needs to be mitigated. Common sense reform is needed, and he will work toward non-partisan Special Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 21, 2024 Page 10 of 10 solutions, in the spirit of cooperation. He outlined a few of his ideas on reform and asked that the Legislature give some consideration to change. Chairman Sellers reiterated the previous comments and thanked Jen Pokorski, County Manager. He also thanked Supervisor Gates and Mr. Schira who were instrumental in the dissemination of accurate information during this election cycle. Motion to approve by Supervisor Bill Gates, seconded by Supervisor Thomas Galvin Ayes: Jack Sellers, Thomas Galvin, Bill Gates, Clint Hickman, Steve Gallardo Chairman Sellers asked the Clerk if there were any public comments on this item. Trevor Cook, resident, came forward to speak in support. He said he agrees with Vice Chairman Galvin on election reform and hopes the Governor and the Legislature will agree. MEETING ADJOURNED There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned. _______________________________ Thomas Galvin, Chairman of the Board ATTEST: ___________________________ Juanita Garza, Clerk of the Board