MOSES LAKE – The Grant County 4-H Fairgrounds building was filled with residents registering to vote and completing their ballots with Grant County Auditor Michelle Jaderlund and Elections Administrator Marlen Gomez helping voters with the process.  

In Grant County, there were 50,161 registered voters with 16,898 ballots returned as of Nov. 5 at 8:03 p.m., according to the Grant County Auditor website. As of Monday there were only 49,837 registered voters with 9,742 of those turning in their ballots. 

Jaderlund said that this is the first presidential election where they have worked with the fairgrounds to provide an in-person place for voters to use. 

“We have this voting center we set up,” Jaderlund said. “We set this up last year just for this day, to make sure that we could cover some of the people here and make it easier for them to come and get their ballot or register.” 

Jaderlund said that they started the polling location at the fairgrounds last November with only around 20 people showing up.  

“I think most definitely this has helped,” Jaderlund said. “Having this available for everybody has been a real bonus for everybody that wants to register or vote.” 

In Grant County, there have been 523 ballots challenged, according to the Washington Secretary of State. Jaderlund explained that this has to do with either a lack of a signature or the signature not aligning with the signature on file. She said voters will have until Nov. 25 to rectify the ballot with her office reaching out to voters via phone, email and mail to notify them of the ballot challenge.  

Results are canvassed and confirmed after County Canvassing Boards certify and transmit the results to the Secretary of State’s Office on Nov. 26 and the Secretary of State certifies the election Dec. 5. Until then, results released are tentative. 

Jaderlund said that it helps to have the fairgrounds' location because the office in the Grant County Courthouse in Ephrata is quite tiny and they would only be able to help a couple of people at a time, instead of the hundreds Jaderlund said she has assisted today.  

“It's been super quiet and calm,” Jaderlund said. “Everything has gone along just great.” 

    Grant County Auditor Michele Jaderlund prints ballots to hand out to eligible voters at the Grant County Fairground Nov. 5.
  

    Elections Administrator Aleanah Lopez goes back into the Grant County Courthouse after locking the voting box in Ephrata to finalize the first results for Grant County elections.