What happens to the ballots once the elections board counts the votes? Election Truth

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Ohio election law requires that even after the counting is done and election results are final, county election boards in Ohio cannot discard the ballots.

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Ohio election law requires that even after the counting is done and election results are final, county election boards in Ohio cannot discard the ballots. Ballots must instead be temporarily secured after the election in case they are needed to resolve discrepancies that might arise.

Ballots must instead be temporarily secured after the election in case they are needed to resolve discrepancies that might arise. And they’re not just put in a box in a storeroom. They’re kept under lock and key.

With all the misinformation and questions circulating about the November election, The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com asked Northeast Ohio elections officials to explain how and why they secure already counted ballots, as part of a myth-busting series called Election Truth.

The only reason ballots would be retrieved and reexamined after an election is if lawsuits are filed challenging the results, said Brian Cleary, the manager of the ballot preparation and tabulation department for Cuyahoga County’s Board of Elections.

That rarely happens, but President Donald Trump has publicly suggested he might challenge the outcome of this year’s vote for president, a move that could require a second look at ballots.

In Cuyahoga County, retrieving the ballots would require a trip to what election workers refer to as the vault, a fenced-off area in the elections board’s warehouse that is under surveillance 24-hours a day.

The area is protected with a double lock system. Opening the locks requires that one Democrat and one Republican each be present, Cleary said.

For elections for federal offices – president, members of Congress presidential electors – state law requires all ballots (used and unused) must be kept for 22 months. For other elections they must be kept for 60 days.

Boards also must preserve and secure electronic tabulation materials, such as flash sticks or discs used to record results off election machines.

“A board may transfer data from its tabulation server or memory cards to another storage source before the expiration of the retention period as long as the board provides public notice of at least two business days of the time and place of the transfer,” the Ohio Revised Code states.

The ballots might be pulled out for recounts or hand counted spot-checks that counties do to check the accuracy of their counting machines.

But once the final canvass is made public, they are sealed in the secured area for the retention period.

Similar security protocols are in place at other boards of election in Ohio.

Read more stories in our Election Truth series:

Introducing “Election Truth”: A Plain Dealer and cleveland.com series about voting in Northeast Ohio and how the system is secure

How to apply for Ohio’s vote-by-mail option, and why it’s secure: Election Truth

Using a state ID to apply for an Ohio absentee ballot? You should know this: Election Truth

Want to ensure you are properly registered to vote in Ohio? Here’s how: Election Truth

How do election drop boxes work, and how are they secure? Election Truth

How does vote-by-mail work in Ohio, and why is it safe? Election Truth

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