2020 General Election
Turnout rate (VEP)
0
%
Votes cast from mailed-out ballots
0
%
2016 General Election
Turnout rate (VEP)
0
%
Votes cast from mailed out ballots
0
%
State election policies as of 2022...
Full Vote-at-Home
0/10
Full Vote-at-Home
Voter automatically mailed ballot for every election
No Excuse Required
6/6
No Excuse Required
No excuse to vote from home
Single Sign-Up
1/6
Single Sign-Up
Voter signs up once to receive mail ballot for all future elections
Local Vote-at-Home Option
3/5
Local VAH Option
Local governments have discretion to conduct full vote-at-home elections
Online Mail Ballot Sign-Up
0/2
Online Mail Ballot Sign-Up
Voter can apply for mail ballot online
Ballot Tracking
1/4
Ballot Tracking
Voter can receive ballot status notifications.
In-Person Ballot Return
4/5
In-Person Ballot Return
Voter has multiple options to return mail ballot in person
Signature Verification
4/4
Signature Verification
Voter signature verified before ballot is counted
Ballot Cure Process
0/4
Ballot Cure Process
Voter can correct issues so ballot can be counted
Prepaid Postage
0/4
Prepaid Postage
Postage-paid return envelopes provided
Election Day Postmark Acceptance
1/4
Election Day Postmark Acceptance
Ballots postmarked by Election Day are accepted
In-Person Voting
4/4
In-Person Return
Physical locations for voters to vote and receive assistance
Pre-Processing
1/3
Signature Verification
Ballots are verified and scanned before Election Day
Mail Ballot Applications
2/2
Mail Ballot Applications
Election officials can mail ballot applications to all voters eligible to vote from home
Ballot Return Assistance
2/2
Ballot Return Assistance
Voters may receive assistance to return their mail ballot
Last Updated
Opportunities
Creating an online portal for voters to request an absentee ballot not only makes it much more convenient for voters, it also would be a boon to election officials. The system could be built to feed directly into the voter registration system to help verify addresses, collect contact information, and to remove administrative steps (and costs!) to process a large amount of requests. Electronic signatures on file, such as from the Driver’s License Dept., can be used to sign these applications, or the final digits of social security numbers can be used. We encourage an integrated process that allows new voters to register, current voters to make changes to their address and make requests for ballots in a seamless manner.
Kansas can increase voter confidence by allowing voters to track their ballot much like an Amazon package by improving its current ballot tracking system. Advanced ballot tracking systems can proactively notify voters when their ballot takes a new step in the path from being sent to them to finally being counted (or rejected). If a ballot is rejected, these ballot tracking tools can be used as another method to contact voters if there is a signature mismatch or deficiency on their return envelope.
Kansas can reduce costs and increase voter convenience by expanding its permanent absentee option, where voters can sign up to automatically be sent an absentee ballot for each election without having to re-apply, to all voters. States experience significant savings with these lists; on average, states save $1 for every request they no longer need to process.
Offering secure drop boxes as another method for voters to return ballots is a cost-effective way to reduce strain on the postal system, and boxes are sometimes a preferred method by voters who want an extra bit of reassurance that their ballot makes it to the elections office on time. We highly recommend making the drop boxes added in 2020 a permanent practice for future elections.
We highly recommend implementing vote centers, or polling locations where any voter in the county can vote, in all counties. This is a way to streamline the system so over time, as the share of the vote cast by mail increases, counties can have fewer overall polling locations, while individual voters will have more voting location options.
Recent Legislation
As of May 25, 2021
In 2020 the state’s Democratic Presidential Primary, which is run by the Kansas Democratic party rather than the state, was held entirely by mail. While a variety of emergency legislation to facilitate mail voting was proposed for the general election, none was adopted. In the fall the Secretary of State offered each county up to two ballot drop-off boxes for the November general election.
Two major legislative changes were made in the 2021 session to mail voting, both were vetoed by the governor and later overridden and put into law and could spell trouble longterm. The first, HB2332, severely limits the changes both the governor and the Secretary of State can make to election procedures in response to an emergency or a court case. The second, HB2183, bars election officials from accepting funding from outside people or groups. In 2020, nonprofits provided funds for chronically-underfunded election offices across the nation to pay for ballot tracking systems, drop boxes, and processing equipment so systems could handle the massive increase in mail ballots. With these new laws, there is no “fallback” if an emergency occurs and the legislature does not react, or fund its election systems, properly.