In a sea of election fraud allegations and concerns, one Idaho county is standing out for its unique transparency tool. Ada County’s “Ballot Verifier,” pioneered by a Republican, allows access to every ballot cast since 2022 – over 680,000 records. Not only does it reveal contest results and ballot images, but it does so without compromising voters’ personal information.
Trent Tripple, who worked in the County Clerk’s office, states, “I was tired of everybody questioning elections in Idaho… The idea is to get the vast majority of people back into this bucket of trusting elections.”
Even the Secretary of State Phil McGrane acknowledges the tool as the “first of its kind” in a May 2024 podcast interview. “I can’t even dream up how we can be more transparent than this,” Tripple boasts to tech magazine WIRED. “There isn’t anything else that we have that the public cannot see.”
Ada County’s Ballot Verifier sets a new standard for transparency by not only releasing data on how ballots were counted, but also making them easily searchable online. User can filter by ballot type and precincts, view images of every ballot counted, and see a side-by-side comparison with “cast vote records.”
In the past, residents had to wait and pay fees to obtain ballot information through public records requests. But now, “the general public can view and download all cast ballots at any time, as well as run their own ‘citizen count,’” according to the website.
‘Tired Of Everybody Questioning Elections’: Idaho County Draws National Attention With Unique Ballot Transparency Tool https://t.co/NLMXrV0YIQ
— Sharon (@SweetFreedom29) November 24, 2024
The program is managed by Massachusetts-based Civera, which has also partnered with other state and local governments. Tripple states, “The Ballot Verifier produced complete transparency and so much more. I don’t know of a more powerful elections tool that places all data in the hands of citizens that is easier to use.”
HUGE WIN For Election Integrity ‼️ 🇺🇸
Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane “Ada County, just launched their ballot verifiers. They created a tool. It's one of the first of its kind in the nation where they post every single image of every single ballot here in the county. Not… pic.twitter.com/0IUkYMyQ3e
— Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) May 22, 2024
In 2024, election security was a major concern for many officials, from ballot fraud to noncitizens voting. Ada County’s Ballot Verifier stands as a shining example of transparency and trustworthiness in the face of these concerns.
h/t: Steadfast and Loyal
