Why are ballots sent to dead people in Washington?

One of the biggest problems that can shake people’s trust in the democratic process is ineligible voters and dead people getting their ballots. This comes up every election cycle, and 2024 is no exception.

Virginia was at the forefront as they are in the midst of ongoing legal battle in the US Supreme Court exclude non-citizens from voter lists. Even here in Washington, the woman from Bellevue just received ballots for 16 different people by mail.

Even more confusing is when a dead person receives the ballot. How does this happen?

Why do dead people get ballots in Washington elections?

KTTH’s “Jason Rantz Show” reached out to the Snohomish and King County Assessor’s offices to find out why this is happening, how they will know if a voter has passed away and what to do if one of those ballots is returned.

When a ballot is sent to a deceased person, it is usually because that person’s information was entered before the county was notified of their death. The county also often learns of a person’s death through their family. But it’s not surprising that immediate data updates aren’t always a family member’s top priority.

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If the family member does not notify, the county also checks with agencies such as the Social Security Administration, the U.S. Postal Service, the Washington State Department of Licensing and the Washington State Department of Health. Snohomish County said it even publishes a daily obituary review in the newspaper.

If a ballot is mailed to someone before the county knows they have died, if it is returned, it will be flagged and set aside for further review.

What if a dead voter’s ballot is returned?

The primary defense against any potentially fraudulent ballots is signature verification.

Washington state law requires that the signature match the signature on the voter registration record for that ballot to be counted. Thus, if someone else were to sign up for a dead voter’s ballot, it would be immediately contested.

A ballot with an inappropriate signature and dated after the voter’s death will be investigated by the county attorney’s office for potential criminal charges. In 2020, King County investigated 17 suspicious cases out of more than 1.2 million returned ballots.

So, do people receiving ballots assume that fraud and scams are widespread? While unlikely, the greater concern is that such errors understandably sow distrust in the integrity of our elections. We all have a responsibility to demand transparency among our local elections officials and that they prosecute any violators to the fullest extent of the law.

Jackson Meyer is the producer of The Jason Rantz Show.

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