Bothell looks for site for drop-off ballot box

BOTHELL — Snohomish County’s portion of Bothell lacks a ballot drop-off box.

That’s an inconvenience for people in one of the county’s fastest-growing areas as they vote in the Nov. 4 election.

The county sent out 410,000 ballots Thursday for the all-mail election. People can mail them back, take them to the county administration building at 3000 Rockefeller Ave. in Everett or to one of 11 drop boxes available around the clock throughout the county, from Stanwood to Edmonds, Mukilteo to Monroe.

But there’s nothing in Bothell, for now.

“We’ve been looking at that area for a box,” county elections manager Garth Fell said. “We have this box ready to go, it’s just a matter of finding a suitable location for it.”

The county tries to place drop boxes in densely populated areas, Fell said, but spots that aren’t likely to generate traffic backups. Nearby transit routes are another requirement.

The county also wants consistency, so people become familiar with the spot over the course of several elections.

County elections staff members welcome suggestions about where to put a Bothell-area drop box, especially from business owners or tenants who can authorize the county to use their property. Send an email to elections@snoco.org.

This year’s election features candidates for Congress and the Legislature, plus special one-year terms for the Snohomish County executive and sheriff. There’s an initiative on the ballot about limiting K-12 classes sizes and two others concerning background checks for firearms purchases.

People in Bothell, which straddles Snohomish and King counties, get to vote on a new bond to pay for city parks. Stanwood voters will decide whether to annex into the Sno-Isle Library System. Lynnwood voters get to decide whether to raise the sales tax to pay for road improvements.

Everett voters get to decide a special one-year City Council race. Races for judicial offices, a Snohomish County Public Utility District commissioner seat and fire district levies are on the ballot as well.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.

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