Thousands of mail-in ballots were not counted in Nevada in November. KUNR checked in with the Secretary of State to learn about why this happened.

By the end of the 2024 general election, there were more than 32,000 ballots that needed a signature cure. This means a voter’s county election staff could not match the signature on their ballot with one they had on file. The counties and political parties scrambled to contact voters by mail, email, phone call, and text.

Even with this outreach, only 72% of voters verified their identity by the deadline, which is 10 days after Election Day, but that left more than 9,000 ballots not counted. Some tight races have been called with fewer votes than that, including in 2022 when incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto beat Republican challenger Adam Laxalt by roughly 7,000 votes.

Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar said the signature problem persists for a number of reasons. He said that Nevada’s counties need a uniform process for verifying signatures, and he pointed to the number of young people who voted, which was higher than the national average.

“Most youth voters aren’t used to using a traditional signature, so when you’re asking to use pen to paper on a ballot, when all they’ve used is a digital system, it becomes a little more complicated,” Aguilar said. “Also, most youth voters are probably first-time voters, so there’s not a voter history of their signature.”

Aguilar said it’s not his decision alone to propose changes and that there should be research into what other jurisdictions are doing to make sure elections remain safe and secure.

KUNR’s coverage of Nevada State Government is made possible by a generous grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting that aims to boost awareness and engagement with coverage of Nevada State Government.