Tulsa Co Election Board Says Record Number Of Absentee Ballots Requested

The November election is already record breaking, as the number of absentee ballots requested for the election is five times the normal amount.

The Tulsa County Election Board already has an assembly line for absentee ballot packets running, complete with COVID-19 instructions, voting instructions, a warning not to vote twice and two envelopes that go inside a third. The ballot comes later.

In the last two weeks, these workers have assembled 30,000 packets, and the demand is growing.

With 500 new requests each day, the election board figures they'll need 100,000 absentee ballots.

“These guys have been working 10-12 hour days and weekends,” Tulsa County Election Board Secretary Gwen Freeman said.

Freeman said she's confident her staff can get enough absentee ballots ready and get them counted when they're mailed back. She urges voters to look closely at the directions because the forms have slightly changed.

With five times as many absentee requests as usual, plus the complications of crowded precincts and COVID-19, the election board is working as fast as they can now to be ready for the November election.