Some Andover Precinct 7 Voters Sent The Wrong Ballot

ANDOVER, MA — Some Andover Precinct 7 voters were sent mail-in ballots for the wrong precinct, the town clerk confirmed Tuesday.

"We don’t know how many ballots were affected, but we believe it’s a relatively small number," Town Clerk Austin Simko said. "Out of more than 1000 Precinct 7 ballots mailed out, we received around a dozen phone calls."

The incorrect ballots went out the week of Oct. 5, according to a letter sent to the precinct's voters, Saturday. Simko said his office believes the voters were sent Precinct 2 to 4 ballots, instead.

The only difference between the two ballots is the state representative race. Precinct 7 voters can cast ballots in the 18th Essex District race between Democrat Tram Nguyen and Republican Jeff Dufour, while Precinct 2 to 4 voters have 17th Essex District Rep. Frank Moran running for re-election uncontested.

Precinct 7 voters can request replacement mail-in ballots by calling the town clerk's office at 978-623-8230, then return them by mail or using the town's ballot dropbox. They can also vote in person early or on Election Day.

Anyone who has already voted can still request a replacement, and only their second ballot will be counted. If they do not re-vote, their ballot will still be counted, but the state representative race will not be counted.

>>Election 2020: Andover Voter Guide

About 20 voters have requested new ballots since Saturday. There's no indication of similar issues in other precincts.

"Almost all of the voters who called us haven’t been sure whether they received the incorrect ballot before mailing and requested a second ballot just to be safe," Simko said. "No voters from other precincts have reported receiving the wrong ballot."

The replacement ballot process follows a regular process the office already has in place for voters who forgot to sign their ballot return envelope, Simko added.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.