‘Do not put it in a mailbox’: Steve Hobbs urges WA voters to use ballot drop boxes before the Election Day deadline

Washington voters have until 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, to return their ballots to an official drop box or voting center. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs urged voters still holding their ballots to avoid relying on an Election Day mail pickup to obtain a timely postmark.

Appearing on “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio, Hobbs emphasized voting before the deadline and encouraged people with election concerns to ask county officials about the process.

“I just want to make sure people realize that it’s not too late. You can still vote, and you should put your ballot in a drop box,” Hobbs said. “Do not put it in a mailbox.”

Drop boxes avoid uncertainty over postmarks

Washington’s voters’ pamphlet recommends mailing ballots more than a week before Election Day. Ballots deposited in official drop boxes by the deadline are guaranteed to arrive on time.

“In the past, we were all used to, as long as I put my ballot in the mailbox before my mail carrier, it’s going to get stamped that day by 8 p.m., right?” Hobbs said. “No longer the case.”

Voters can find drop box locations and check whether their county elections office has received their ballot here.

“You can go to VoteWA.gov and see the status of your ballot,” Hobbs said. “And in fact, you can sign up for text notification.”

Hobbs asks voters to examine the election process

Hobbs described taking a friend who doubted election security to the Snohomish County elections facility.

“If people have any questions or doubts about their elections, don’t keep it to yourself. Don’t share it on social media. Go find the truth,” Hobbs said. “Go to the elections director. Go to your local county election center. You can actually see the process going on with your own eyes.”

His explanation included signature checks, comparisons between voter databases, and security measures for handling ballots.

“We’ve been really good about telling you when to put your ballot in the drop box and when to vote, but that’s about it,” Hobbs said. “I think if more people had known that, maybe we wouldn’t have had so much doubt. I didn’t even know that before I was secretary of state, and I was a state senator.”

Initiative wording draws questions about reform

The interview also addressed confusion over initiatives that ask voters to repeal an existing law rather than enact one.

Hobbs described explaining the income tax repeal initiative to his mother-in-law.

“She wanted to repeal the income tax. I said, ‘Well, you gotta vote yes, right? You can’t vote no,’” Hobbs said. “But she said, ‘But I don’t like income tax, so I’m gonna vote no.’”

Hobbs rejected the suggestion that the wording was intentionally confusing but said lawmakers should consider improvements.

“I don’t disagree with you that we’ve got to look into better language. Maybe there’s a way to do that,” Hobbs said. “The next legislative session, we can pass a bill.”

He also discussed separating fiscal information from other ballot language.

“Maybe it’s an independent commission. Maybe you allow for more for and against, and allow for a section that deals with fiscal impacts,” Hobbs said. “That could be a solution to that.”

Questions deserve explanations, Hobbs says

Hobbs returned to how he responds to people who distrust elections.

“Whenever somebody has an objection to our elections, I don’t get mad at them. I don’t call them stupid,” Hobbs said. “I just take it from a perspective like they didn’t know, because I didn’t know.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio.