Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold Responds to Misinformation Related to Ballot Drop Boxes

Denver, August 12, 2020 – Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold today responded to attacks on mail ballot drop boxes. As a mail ballot state, Colorado has long been successfully using drop boxes for the return of ballots.

“Colorado’s election model is the nation’s gold standard, and we use both mail ballots and ballot drop boxes,” said Secretary Griswold. “Mail ballot drop boxes are safe, secure, and add great access to voting. In fact, about 75% of mail ballot voters return their ballots to a drop box. Our use of drop boxes is even more crucial as the U.S. Postal Service is under attack.”

Colorado is expected to have between 330-350 drop boxes available to voters across the state this November. Over the last two years alone, approximately 100 boxes have been added throughout the state for Colorado voters.

Secretary Griswold announced the funding for up to an additional 100 drop boxes before the November General Election, and has encouraged counties to apply for the funding.

Colorado drop boxes are safe and secure. Drop boxes are sturdy, metallic, weather-resistant, and are bolted to the ground. Colorado law also requires that all drop boxes be kept under 24-hour video surveillance with adequate lighting in order to be able to easily detect potential tampering. When drop boxes are emptied, they are done so at least every 24 hours by a team of bipartisan election judges who must maintain a detailed chain of custody log when transporting ballots between drop boxes and the central counting facility to ensure no ballots are removed or added.

With budget cuts and other attacks on the U.S. Postal Service, Colorado’s election model is uniquely insulated to withstand any service disruptions. Ballots are sent to voters starting 25 days before Election Day and voters are reminded that they must return their ballot via drop box instead of the mail within eight days of the election. In addition, during the 2020 legislative session, Secretary Griswold led the Colorado legislature to pass a law requiring replacement ballots be sent via first-class mail starting 11 days before Election Day.

In addition to drop boxes, Colorado will have approximately 330 voting centers open with many opening 15 days before Election Day per Colorado state law. Each voting center will have COVID-19 related procedures in place to ensure in-person voting is as safe as possible. In Colorado’s State Primary in June, 99.3% of all ballots were returned via mail or drop box.

For more information on Colorado’s elections, including how to register to vote, please visit www.GoVoteColorado.gov.