Congressional observers reported concerns after viewing ballot handling and signature verification at a third-party facility used during the 2024 election.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Video recorded during a visit by congressional observers to a third-party election vendor in Arizona shows ballot processing activities that prompted concerns about oversight and handling procedures during the 2024 election.
The footage, first detailed in reporting by Just the News, documents a visit by one Republican and one Democratic congressional staffer to a private printing and election services company that assisted with ballot processing in Maricopa County, the state’s most populous county.
Following the visit, the Republican staffer submitted a memo to Congress describing what were characterized as “alarming” observations about how mail-in ballots were being handled at the facility. The memo was later referenced in a separate report by Just the News.
The facility involved was Runbeck Election Services, which had been contracted by Maricopa County to sort vote-by-mail ballots and conduct signature verification before ballots were returned to the county’s primary election center for counting.
According to the memo, the congressional staffers observed completed ballots stored in the same room as blank ballots while workers sorted them for verification. The report stated that the work was carried out at a private facility without county election officials or bipartisan election observers present.
The staffer wrote that his Democratic counterpart shared similar concerns after the tour. Both observers visited the facility as part of oversight activities connected to the House Administration Committee, which oversees federal elections.
During the visit, the observers were shown operations by an individual identified in the memo as Runbeck’s chief executive officer. The video captured workers feeding mail-in ballots—contained in signature-verification envelopes—through machines designed to check signatures against voter records.
After the process, workers prepared the ballots for shipment back to the main Maricopa County election facility.
The footage also shows open U.S. Postal Service boxes containing incoming ballots stored on nearby shelves awaiting processing. According to the observers’ description, pallets of blank ballots and unused mail-in envelopes were stored nearby within the same facility.
Arizona election procedures allow political party representatives to observe ballot handling activities. According to the state’s official election guidance on observer access, observers may monitor activities at central counting locations and other significant points where ballots are processed or transferred between officials.
However, the rules do not explicitly address private third-party sorting sites used by counties.
Runbeck had previously agreed to allow political party observers to watch the ballot sorting process at its facility after lawmakers raised concerns following the 2022 election, according to earlier reporting by Votebeat Arizona.
Neither Maricopa County nor Runbeck responded to renewed requests for comment regarding the congressional observers’ visit.
Debate over election procedures in Maricopa County has persisted for years. The county, which includes Phoenix, has frequently been at the center of disputes about ballot handling as Arizona expanded the use of mail-in voting.
Earlier this year, Arizona’s state Senate was required to provide election records to federal investigators following a grand jury subpoena connected to Maricopa County, according to Just the News reporting.
Questions about signature verification and ballot counting also surfaced following the 2020 election. A state Senate review later estimated that more than 200,000 ballots may have contained signature mismatches that were not reviewed or “cured,” according to a study referenced during the audit.
Those findings remain contested. Democratic officials and Maricopa County administrators have argued that the concerns are exaggerated, while Republican officials have continued to call for additional scrutiny of election procedures.
Disputes about election administration have continued into planning for upcoming elections. Local officials and the county recorder have clashed over early voting procedures and oversight measures, according to ongoing coverage of the dispute.
Separate reporting has also raised questions about ballot processing across state lines. A report by The California Globe stated that mail-in ballots from Nevada’s Clark County were shipped to the same Arizona facility for processing and were allegedly stored alongside ballots from other jurisdictions.
The outlet noted that federal election guidelines emphasize bipartisan observation, strict chain-of-custody procedures and continuous accountability when ballots are handled.
Arizona Republican Rep. Abe Hamadeh asked the Department of Justice to investigate Runbeck Election Services’ role in the 2024 election. In a letter sent last summer, the congressman requested a review of whether proper protocols were followed, including concerns about mixing blank ballots with completed mail-in ballots.
Hamadeh later reiterated the concerns publicly in a statement shared on social media, outlining questions raised with the Justice Department regarding ballot security procedures at the facility.
The congressional observers’ visit and the video footage have now become part of broader discussions about election oversight in Maricopa County as state and federal officials continue reviewing ballot processing procedures ahead of future elections.
WATCH THE VIDEO HERE
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