KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Absentee ballots for the November 8 General Election were mailed late last week and should be arriving now at homes in the City of Kalamazoo, if they haven’t already.
Kalamazoo City Clerk Scott Borling says they don’t know if it was election tampering or just mischievous teens but someone snatched a few completed ballots off mailboxes along Bronson Boulevard, opened them, and stashed them into other mailboxes.
He says the voters who had their ballots spoiled have been issued replacements.
Borling says there are safeguards built into the system to verify the signature of the voter when they apply for an absentee ballot.
The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety is investigating the reported mail theft. Department Spokesman Jay Shatara says they have seen a hike in mail thefts in general over the past few months, but this is the first involving ballots.
Registered voters have until just a few days before the election to request an absentee ballot.
(reporting from John McNeill)
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