Minnehaha, Lincoln counties halt use of ballot drop boxes ahead of June primary

The Lincoln County and Minnehaha County auditor's offices are discontinuing the use of absentee ballot drop boxes, at least for now.

Both offices announced through press releases Friday the policy is effective starting next Wednesday, and won't be used for the remaining 2022 elections.

Lincoln County auditor Sheri Lund said Friday her office decided to stop using the drop box, located inside the sheriff's office, because the county is currently "not in the restraints of the pandemic."

"I've been debating over the last few days on whether I was going to continue to use it," Lund told the Argus Leader. "I figured the best bet would be to keep it, but this time, not use it because we're not in the restraints of the pandemic."

Minnehaha County will stop using their ballot drop box for similar reasons. The county's auditor Ben Kyte said his office has been using drop boxes for municipal elections.

His office sees more people in Minnehaha County willing to come vote in-person, and he says discontinuing the use after the upcoming election will assist in saving more resources for other elections.

Lincoln County's ballot drop box is located in the entrance of the sheriff's office. It was originally located outside, near the handicap rail, but was moved inside the sheriff's office for more security, Lund said.

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Minnehaha County's drop box is located on the west side of the Minnehaha County Administration Building. Kyte says he's ordered his office to remove that ballot box after the Tuesday's Sioux Falls city elections are over to avoid confusion for people driving by who might think it's still useable.

Contentious Lincoln County meeting on ballot boxes results in 25 residents walking out

Minnehaha and Lincoln County residents can still vote absentee and request an absentee ballot from the auditor's office, but they have to mail their ballot to the office, deliver in-person or have someone deliver it to the office.

Lund is also planning to have a deputy stationed in Sioux Falls for in-person drop off.

Earlier in week, Lund told county commissioners at their Tuesday meeting, the drop box was purchased during 2020. People needed a safe, contactless option to get their ballots to her office during the COVID-19 pandemic, after the courthouse temporarily closed.

Thousands of people took advantage of the drop box, she said.

"There was no fraudulent activity proven to be had," Lund said at the Tuesday meeting.

But after Commissioner Joel Arends' motion to remove the drop box failed at that same meeting, a group of more than 25 residents attending walked out, frustrated they wouldn't be able to air their grievances.

Lincoln County Commissioner Tiffani Landeen had informed them the meeting wasn't a public forum and they couldn't take public input at that time.

Lincoln County auditor says most ballot box concerns were "unfounded"

At that meeting, Lund didn't see a need to remove the drop box, since there was no proven fraudulent activity and her office hadn't heard complaints about the handling of the drop box.

The concerns she heard about the drop box were "all unfounded."

"They had a fear that ballots would be stuffed, that people would come in and drop random ballots in there," Lund said.

Those were the biggest concerns about the drop box, but more people have reached out to her wanting to keep the drop box than not.

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"It's a double-edge sword, because I do have people saying they like the convenience of it," Lund said. "But then I have people saying they don't want it."

To serve the whole community, Lund said locking up the drop box until further notice, or if another crisis comes up where a contactless option is needed, is a "good compromise."

She says the drop box was always monitored and secure. The decision to stop using the drop box was a matter of "at this point, we don't need them."

For Arends, those were serious concerns to residents who believed ballots via drop box are not "legitimate."

"There will be more confidence in the election, so residents will feel better about coming forward and casting their ballot," Arends said.

The next election is the state's primary on June 7. The voter registration deadline is May 23 and absentee voting begins April 22, according to the South Dakota Secretary of State's website.

Email human rights reporter Nicole Ki at nki@argusleader.com or follow on Twitter at @_nicoleki.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Minnehaha, Lincoln counties to stop using ballot drop boxes