Election officials working on new Sussex polling places

Three Sussex County polling places, called out in a recent report for offering inadequate accommodations for people with disabilities, are slated for replacement under a proposal by county election officials.

“We began working on eliminating polling places that we saw had issues right after the last election,” said Bo McDowell, director of the Department of Elections Sussex County Office.

Polling places at the Lewes-Rehoboth Fire Station 3 on Route 24, Mid-Sussex Rescue on Indian Mission Road, and Redden Community Hall near Georgetown were singled out in a recent report issued by the Disabilities Law Program and the Community Legal Aid Society Inc.

Joann Kingsley, a voting rights advocate for the group, said accessible parking at all the sites was the biggest issue. When she visited the Mid-Sussex Rescue site, she said, several polling staff members told her the site was unsuitable, and they had raised concerns during the primary election in 2022.

“Located on a busy thoroughfare, there was not enough parking for anyone, much less for voters with disabilities,” Kingsley said.

McDowell agreed and said his office is finishing a report to increase the number of polling places for the 2024 presidential election from 66 to 80. Seven sites, including the three Sussex County sites, are slated to be replaced as polling places in a report that will be submitted to the state election board, he said.

“Those sites had stood out to us as a problem,” McDowell said. “We didn’t like them, CLASI didn’t like them, and we did find spots to replace them.”

Under the proposal, he said, the Mid-Sussex Rescue site will be replaced by Long Neck Methodist Church and Long Neck Elementary; Station 3 will be replaced by Conley’s United Methodist Church; and the Redden Community Hall will be replaced by Old Path Church of Christ.

McDowell said he is reaching out to the state board for approval, even though they do not have to officially vote on it. Once he has the OK, he said, he will reach out to local legislators to keep them in the loop.

“We think it’s nice for everyone to collaborate so we can all agree on the best way to do this,” he said.

McDowell said he wants to ensure the best voting experience for the 2024 presidential election and not repeat the long lines and wait times from the 2020 election.

“We’re trying to avoid that because the population has grown significantly. We know there’s going to be more people coming out in 2024 if it's a contentious battle again for president,” he said. “We’re asking for more locations and more machines, and if we can do that we believe it will be as smooth as possible.”