SANDPOINT — Who is the best?

That will be up to voters as the annual Best of Bonner County gets underway with nominations running June 14-22.

Polls will open Thursday, July 1, and close on Friday, July 9. Winners will be announced in our Saturday, August 28, in a special edition of the Bonner County Daily Bee.

“We are thrilled to have had so many participants in this year’s nominations contest,” Bill Davis, Daily Bee general manager, said. “This is a great representation of the community’s preferences.

“Congratulations to those businesses and professionals for making such a positive impact on their customers. This is truly the result of consumers picking their favorites in our community.”

Davis said that in the past, attempts to stack the ballot couldn’t always be detected or eradicated. However, that has changed, as Best of Bonner County voting now employs new technology and a new process to weed out ballot-stacking attempts.

According to Davis, voters going to the website will see up to five nominations in each of 109 different categories. Because the software accurately tracks email addresses — clearing cache or history won’t wipe the slate clean — voters can vote for just one nominee in each category.

“One email address,” Davis said, “one vote.”

He noted that voters can leave the site at any time during the voting period and come back and vote some more, but not on any categories they’ve already voted on.

“This is a way for winning businesses to speak to their loyal customers and newcomers alike, people who are all looking for the best of the best,” he said.

Information: bonnercountydailybee.com