Voters lined up Tuesday at the R.B. Hubbard Center in downtown Tyler.

The Smith County Commissioners Court detailed what went wrong during the Nov. 5 election and the changes the county plans to make to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

The court was presented with an internal review of the Election Day issues and detailed possible solutions during Tuesday’s regularly scheduled commissioners court meeting.

Smith County Judge Nathaniel Moran said that when setting parameters for the review and action plan, he used the acronym S.A.F.E. as a guideline: secure accurate, friendly and efficient.

“We preach a lot about open government and transparency,” Moran said. “It is really easy to be transparent when things went well and great, but it’s really hard when (the election) does not live up to your expectations.”

Moran said that in order to move forward, he felt it was important to acknowledge that the election did not meet the standards he expects. He said the review was important to learn what the county can do better in the upcoming March primary and November 2020 general election.

“Hopefully (S.A.F.E.) can be a mantra we can all embrace,” he said. “It does matter not just what we do, but how we do it.”

The review consisted of verifiable internal issues identified by the election commission, which is made up of Moran, the election administrator, the county clerk and the heads of the local political parties.

Moran said one of the biggest issues causing Election Day congestion was lack of early voting options, with only one location open. Only the Hub, which serves as the Smith County Elections Office, was open because the county did not anticipate such a high turnout for what was largely an election centered around state constitutional amendments.

“Looking back we probably shouldn’t have done that,” he said. “We should have anticipated that voter turnout. We didn’t.”

Moran said that on Election Day they also did not deploy enough machines. He said that all 350 machines the county has will likely be in play in March, and that while the May municipal elections won’t command as large of a turnout, significantly more machines will be deployed than in years past.

“That’s a mistake we won’t make again,” he said. “That’s on us and something we’re going to have to own as a mistake.”

Moran also said his own schedule presented an issue. Because he is tied up in commissioners court and probate court on Tuesdays, he was not available to assist with problems throughout the day.

The county also identified at least four voting machines that had technical issues, and three locations with printers not working correctly.

After addressing the issues found in the review, Moran reviewed an 18-point plan of action that the county is working to implement. One big area of focus will be training and setup.

“We, as a county, need to make it as easy as possible on those (election) judges and clerks,” Moran said.

The county will begin working to ensure machines can be set up the night before the election at as many secure locations as possible, will designate county employees for election machine training to be on hand to assist judges and clerks, set up an IT ambulancelike service to stage within the county and respond to nearby technical issues, and have the IT teams check machines ahead of the election for potential issues.

Elections administrator Karen Nelson said most nearby counties set up machines the night before at secure locations and recommended the county do so as well.

“There’s just not enough time (in the morning before polls open),” she said. “That will be key in alleviating a lot of that pressure and strain on Election Day.”

Moran also said he plans to move the commissioners court meeting to the Monday before elections, instead of its regular Tuesday time, and move or cancel his probate docket on election days, in order to be available.

Precinct 1 Commissioner Jeff Warr said that in his experience in insurance, if you’re going to have a problem, it’s best to have that problem in the smallest venue, which is what occurred.

“All these steps are going to make a difference. This is really all hands on deck,” Warr said. “There are very few things we must do absolutely correctly.”

The county also has placed orders for five additional check-in kiosks to have on reserve in case of issues, will designate an election day “help desk” for clerks and judges, precheck connectivity at all locations, and offer significantly more training for poll workers.

In Other Business

The Smith County Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Office presented commissioners with a “check” for more than $500,000 worth of hours worked by volunteers.

The court also approved a contract for vending machine services, which was awarded to Moran Munchies. Judge Moran, who is related to the owners, abstained from the vote.