With new provisions in place for expanded vote-by-mail in the November election, the Vermilion County Clerk’s office has been busy processing applications.
County Clerk Cathy Jenkins says she sent vote-by-mail applications to 17,045 voters and, so far, has received 1,250 of them back, or a return rate of around seven percent. She says more applications are on the way.
“They’re probably going to see another mailing, and maybe a couple more before the election,” Jenkins said. “If they’ve already sent one in, they certainly don’t have to send in another one. IF they don’t want to vote-by-mail, they can simply ignore that mailing.”
Jenkins noted that absentee voting has been available in Vermilion County for decades, and has not been a problem. She says her office takes election integrity seriously and will do what it can to prevent fraud.
“We are vigilant in making sure that the integrity of the voting process is in place,” she said. “We do have checks and balances, and we do monitor that very heavily.”
Early voting and absentee voting rates have increased during Jenkins’ time in the clerk’s office. She said just because a person receives a vote-by-mail application does not mean they are required to fill it out.
