The University of Idaho could see a polling place on campus as soon as May — this would be the first polling place on campus since 2016.
Latah County and UI are finalizing an agreement that would make the Bruce Pitman Center a polling location for at least the next five years Jacob Lockhart, ASUI President, said.
Five years is the length of UI’s and Latah County’s current agreement, but Latah County could ask for an adjustment, Lockhart said. When the five years are close to over the parties would decide if they would like to renew for another set number of years.
Courtesy | UI
The agreement allows for the use of the Bruce Pitman Center’s Vandal Ballroom four times a year for three days at a time, Henrianne Westberg, the Latah County Clerk, Auditor and Recorder, said.
Westberg said the 8th Precinct and 16th Precinct would likely be moved to the Bruce Pitman Center.
She has been working with UI to create a polling place on campus. Westberg has been involved in this issue since the ASUI-Kibbie Activity Center polling location removal. The location wasn’t used again after 2016 due to accessibility and safety issues.
“Some people have felt that I have not moved fast enough, and there are other people who feel that I shouldn’t allow students to vote — much less provide them a special polling place,” Westberg said. “I can’t move people’s polling places erratically.”
Westberg said she has been trying to make a decision on a campus polling place carefully. She said she wants polling places to “potentially be permanent.”
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The Kibbie Dome was not a viable option for a permanent polling place due to the lack of security when Westberg held the 2016 Presidential elections there. She said she wasn’t able to make sure her ballots were secured, as they have to leave the polling equipment overnight. Other reasons varied from student-athletes and the marching band still using the facilities, accessibility issues for the elderly and people with disabilities, and the inability to hear voters due to the size of the space.
Westberg described a scene from the 2016 Presidential Election, where the Marching Band began playing in the middle of the day. She said poll workers were shouting at voters, and nobody could hear each other.
“There’s just too much going on there,” Westberg said. “We need a polling place on the west side of town. I can’t just say, ‘This year you’re going to vote here, next time you’re going to vote over here and I’m not actually sure where you’re going to vote the year after that’ — that’s actually voter suppression in my opinion.”
Lockhart said he understood why the polling place had to be removed from the Kibbie Dome in 2016 but is happy they are working toward a more suitable space.
“It’s important to vote wherever you think it’s important to vote, but voting here makes a big difference,” Lockhart said. “This is a small town and literally every vote does matter.”
This story has been updated to reflect the correct name of Henrianne Westberg.
Alex Brizee can be reached [email protected] or on Twitter @alex_brizee