'We are ... safe as can be'

Through rounds of professional deep cleaning, antibacterial fogging and surface sanitation, the Kootenai County Elections Office is taking every precaution to keep voters safe.

After an early voting worker tested positive for COVID-19 Monday night, the office hired Servpro, a local cleaning agency, to deep-clean the Third Street facility.

Since then, with guidance from deputy Secretary of State Chad Houck, the county elections office brought on Permasafe to clean the building with a 90-day sanitizing agent.

“Permasafe used an antiseptic fogging on the building that provides a full disinfecting process like we did the first night,” Houck said Thursday afternoon. “This was followed by a second surface application, which creates an antimicrobial, antibacterial shield for up to 90 days.”

The facility will still undergo regular surface cleaning throughout the day, Houck said, including sanitation of clipboards, privacy envelopes, pens, electronic voting tablets, and styluses.

“We are as safe as we can be here,” Kootenai County Clerk Jim Brannon said. “We are not allowing people in here unless they are socially distancing. We have six-foot lines marked everywhere. All of our people are masked, and we have hand sanitizer and masks available to all who come to vote.”

As the office ends its first week of early voting, Brannon and Houck fear its brief brush with COVID will affect county participation. Since news of the positive case broke, 20 polling employees and five county judges scheduled to work on election day have quit.

If that trend continues, Brannon said, the county could not support its previously planned 53 polling locations and 70 precincts. And with more than 102,000 registered voters, a logistical nightmare could result, Brannon said.

Houck agreed.

“There is no doubt in my mind that we will still serve the county and hold the election. The real question is what that will look like,” Houck said. “If people keep pulling out and pulling back, are they still going to be able to have 53 locations? Probably not, and that will impact everything.”

At this time, the elections office follows protocols and contingency plans to keep safety at the forefront of its operations, Houck said. Early voting will continue through Oct. 30, running Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1808 N. 3rd St. in Coeur d'Alene.

“We are working very hard to make sure everything is safe, and we have taken every precaution,” Brannon said. “I know North Idaho takes their voting seriously, and we are determined to offer them the best polling we can.”