The bipartisan cooperation between Adams, a Republican, and Kentucky Democratic Governor Andy Beshear was at the center of Kentucky ‘s success. Under state law, the secretary of state and the governor must cooperate on emergency changes in elections.
“What really worked here that we haven’t seen in some other states is that we had reached a bipartisan agreement before the election,” Adams said in an interview. “People trust the rules when both parties accept them.”
Beshear and Adams jointly took several steps to help the state prepare for a coronavirus primary, including delaying elections from mid-May and, critically, allowing for an unprecedented expansion of absentee voting in the state. Kentucky generally requires an excuse for voters to vote absentee.
Under their joint emergency powers, Beshear and Adams waived that requirement, and the vast majority of voters took advantage of it. Some counties also had “absentee voting in person,” effectively an early vote, which also rarely takes place in Kentucky. McReynolds of the National Vote At Home Institute said poll managers in the state proactively contacted his organization for guidance on best practices.
Beshear and Adams relentlessly insisted on the importance of voting before Election Day, to prevent large crowds from meeting in person, and voters accepted the option.
“We have established a pretty good relationship. It doesn’t mean we always agree, “Beshear said of Adams in an interview. “But I could tell her that I wanted to organize the elections safely. And I think he could tell me that he wanted to do the same. And so a lot of planning started early. “
But the changes in Kentucky that led to a largely smooth election were made on a temporary basis, under emergency powers granted due to the pandemic. They are not enshrined in state law.
“We need to continue doing what we did here,” Beshear said. “Therefore, I fully agree with the unexcused absentee vote this November, and I would like to see it enshrined in future Kentucky law. I am in favor of early voting, and for it to be our practice to move forward and to be enshrined in Kentucky law. “
Adams objected when asked about the changes for the November election. “November is four months away,” said Adams. “If you had asked me four months ago ‘What are the June primaries like?’ I would say, ‘Why is there a primary in June? We voted in May.’
Adams said he will continue to monitor the situation. “I have shown that I will put the interests of public health above my own personal political interests,” he said. “My decision was extremely controversial with the Republicans. It turned out to be the correct answer. But it was tough. “
It marked the cost as a possible point of conflict for any change in the November elections. “I want to have an idea of what we can afford,” he said. “If we have to modify it, I think our first pass will be early voting. Voters really liked that flexibility … And then I would say that voting by mail is not ruled out in any way, but it is less likely than other approaches. “
As in many other states, litigation has already begun to accumulate in Kentucky before November to force changes in electoral practices if officials are unable or unwilling to do so on their own. Kentucky League of Women Voters filed a lawsuit in late May Calling on the court to overturn a recent photo identification law and allow the absentee vote to be extended in November.
“We still have hope. And we also have a lawsuit, ”said Wagner, who praised Adams and Beshear for the changes in the primary election. “Between hope and demand, we will be able to have a fair and accessible election in November.”
But not everything that went well in Kentucky will work elsewhere, said Josh Douglas, professor of electoral law and voting rights at the University of Kentucky law school.
“One of the things that we have benefited from is that we have a much smaller population than that of some of the other states where it had all these debacles. So the scale is much more difficult, ”he said.
An obstacle for voters was a limited number of in-person polling places. Many counties chose to have a single place where voters could vote on Election Day due to a very small number of poll workers and concerns about maintaining patterns of social alienation. This includes Jefferson and Fayette counties, the houses of Louisville and Lexington.
A single polling place can create logistical problems, as happened in Louisville. Traffic caught some voters and prevented them from queuing before the polls closed. In Kentucky, voters must be online before 6 pm to vote, one of the earliest poll closing times in the country. Both Adams and Besehar have expressed their support for extending voting hours.
“Access to transportation is a problem in our community, and having a voting center only exacerbates the transportation problem and makes it less likely that people will get there,” said Cassia Herron, president of the Kentuckians group for The Commonwealth, which backed Booker.
But voting in most polling places in the state went smoothly once voters lined up. Lexington saw the lines creep up to two hours due to a lack of registration stations, but election administrators worked day by day to open more, while Louisville ran smoothly.
McReynolds also pointed out that there are benefits for electoral “super centers”, when combined with extensive absentee voting, noting that voters cannot accidentally turn up at the wrong polling place.
But a successful primary does not mean that election officials can rest before November. “I’ve been in office less than six months, talk about rooking the new guy,” Adams joked.
