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Hosted by Prince William County Executive Chris Shorter, The Shorter Topics vodcast is designed to provide quick yet insightful discussions on initiatives that directly impact the community. Each episode will feature in-depth conversations with content experts, county leaders and program managers who are revolutionizing the way services are delivered. With its tagline—Shorter Topics, Bigger Impacts—the vodcast aims to inform and engage residents by showcasing the incredible projects and people driving change in Prince William County Government.
00;00;27;34 - 00;00;58;55
Unknown
Welcome to shorter topics. I'm your county executive, Chris Shorter. Looking forward to a great conversation today as many of you know who have listened in before. Short Topics is really meant to be a great opportunity to meet, community leaders here in Prince William County who are doing phenomenal work. And I will tell you, today, we get an opportunity to meet Eric Olson, director of our elections office, and he is certainly doing that great work around the county.
00;00;58;55 - 00;01;21;26
Unknown
So, Eric, welcome. Thank you so much. It's great to be here, Chris. A lot is happening in elections. Yeah, this is a very busy time. Not just of the year, but this season. Getting prepared for a general election is very, very busy. You have also been doing some absolutely amazing work in elections, which we'll talk about, over this next few minutes.
00;01;21;31 - 00;01;38;35
Unknown
But I really want to start out maybe with just who you are. How did you come into public service? Okay. I've been in elections for about 15 years, and I've worked in DC, in Montgomery County, in Maryland, in Arlington, in Virginia, and now here in Prince William. So this has been a field I've been in for a minute now.
00;01;38;36 - 00;01;59;55
Unknown
So I started off, public service has been something I've always been engaged in. I think I was a in the history and social sciences in schools. That was okay. I'm really, my jam back then. And then I think that, public service. My dad was a schoolteacher. I was in the scouts growing up. So I think, you know, doing things for others always feels good.
00;02;00;04 - 00;02;18;15
Unknown
And to get to do that as a profession, I think is just a real joy. And and so I feel lucky to lead a team. The not only that, I feel that way about my job, but I have a whole team that feels that way and has really dedicated the mission of what we do. Did you always know elections or did?
00;02;18;15 - 00;02;38;51
Unknown
Was this a journey that you, you know, saw the elections, was by accident, but you know, that part of it? I've been in different public policy areas. I graduated from law school in 2008, which was not a great time in the economy to graduate. Laws were. Yeah. Yeah. And a friend was working in elections office in DC, and, they had opportunities for work.
00;02;38;56 - 00;02;54;44
Unknown
And my student loans were coming to. So I thought, well, let me get in there. And it just turned out that I loved it. I really loved the type of work, the pace of the work, the mission. So it was just something that I stuck with and continue to do. For the past 15 years now.
00;02;54;56 - 00;03;18;39
Unknown
Well, you've certainly brought some fresh energy and perspective to the county. What was it? A few months ago, I attended an open house that you. Yeah. And the team, put on, led us through the office and showed us some of the new equipment and just, very, very thoughtful. Great way to engage the community around the elections process.
00;03;18;39 - 00;03;42;04
Unknown
Yeah. I think the, open house is a program that we, we actually got a national award from that, from the elections assistant Elections Assistance Commission, which is the only federal agency that oversees elections. I think transparency and educating people on the elections process has become as much a part of the mission as making sure that our elections are run well and accurately these days.
00;03;42;09 - 00;04;03;40
Unknown
So this, unlike in other general elections this season, we're going to be, dealing with a special election specifically in the magisterial district known as Gainesville. For those who are tuning in, who may not be in Prince William County. I wonder if you could just talk a little bit about what, that special election is what it means.
00;04;03;42 - 00;04;34;09
Unknown
I will say, certainly as a county exec, we, have dealt with a loss here. And the county, supervisor Bob Weir passed away in July. He, was just an absolute, champion, for the town of Haymarket and certainly Prince William County. And, his passing has really rocked the county. What that is meant for us, and certainly for you, is that we need to get prepare for a special election.
00;04;34;10 - 00;04;58;49
Unknown
There are some certainly some rules around how we do that. And so I wonder if you could talk a bit about what that means for us. Special election was requested by the Board of County Supervisors, and then a judge issues a writ for that special election. And based on the code that fell on November 4th, which is the same date as the upcoming general election, so it will be held, in unison with that date.
00;04;58;49 - 00;05;19;52
Unknown
So, basically the only difference is voters in Gainesville, the Gainesville district, are going to have an extra contest on their ballot. So they will have the candidates that are running for that Gainesville district seat for the Board of County Supervisors on their ballot. They will also have all the other contests that are going to be on the ballot this November.
00;05;19;52 - 00;05;45;31
Unknown
The statewide contest for races like the governor, your legislative contests at the state level, the process is basically going to be the same. The general and the special are falling on the exact same date. Very good. So and you said it, I mean, so we have very important, election, decisions to make, as part of the general and of course, for Gainesville residents, the special, I wonder if you could say that one more time.
00;05;45;31 - 00;06;04;38
Unknown
Who's going to be on the ballot for our residents? This, November? Well, we've got the governor, the lieutenant governor, the attorney general races, and then there are legislative races. So your House of delegates race, but it depends. That depends on where you live in the county. So there are a number of different districts in the county.
00;06;04;42 - 00;06;24;26
Unknown
That's something you can go on our website and you can look up and find out who your representative is. You can look at what your sample ballot is going to look like. November. So and if you're a Gainesville resident, you don't have to do anything extra because it's a special election. Your ballot is just automatically going to reflect the contests that you're eligible to vote for.
00;06;24;38 - 00;06;44;53
Unknown
I wonder if you could just talk about some of the kind of new and exciting things happening in, the elections office? Well, we have a couple different things going on. I mentioned the open house that we do. That is something that we do for transparency. We also have a document series online that tells people, you know, we call it how it works.
00;06;44;58 - 00;07;02;12
Unknown
And people can go learn about how does the mail voting process work? How do how does voting go on Election day? So it is sort of a step by step flowchart of how all these things happen, of the steps that we take to make sure that our elections are secure and accurate. We also have, new I voted stickers.
00;07;02;12 - 00;07;20;47
Unknown
It's a big thing right now. So, hey, kind of on the fun side of things, we had a contest last year, to decide new I voted stickers, and we had so many good designs. We had well over 500 designs. I think it was the biggest contest there. A member is anyone who has some serious, attention to it.
00;07;20;47 - 00;07;39;45
Unknown
Yeah. And it was great because it was a lot of students that participated, you know, a lot of artists and professionals in that space. So we had all kinds of great designs. So we had a set of stickers that we, that the election officers decided by their vote as to which stickers they liked the best. And we have four different stickers that we've chosen.
00;07;39;45 - 00;08;04;31
Unknown
So last year we had one that featured the Marine Corps Museum on it is very patriotic theme, appropriate for, you know, presidential election. This year's sticker, is called the Hands in Design. It features the diversity the Prince William County has as the most diverse county, in Virginia. And there are also, a couple other stickers in the pipeline for next year and the year after that.
00;08;04;36 - 00;08;26;26
Unknown
We even have a future voter sticker for the kids that come along with their parents to vote. The adults love the stickers and the the kids love the stickers even more. And you, I understand, absolutely love when folks shared on social media. Well, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, that's that's probably one of the biggest ways people share the, fact that they voted as they they show their sticker to people, they wear it around with pride.
00;08;26;31 - 00;08;48;31
Unknown
Definitely seeing some on some cars now and around the county, which is cool. So it's really nice to see people participating, but also through that spreading the word for others to participate as well. Okay. So so now so we talk general. Well, you have done a lot of work and I know because I've read a lot of emails, from you about early voting.
00;08;48;36 - 00;09;19;22
Unknown
And now what is, available to, residents to vote early? I wonder if you could talk a bit about what that is, what it means some of the polling locations. Yeah. Sure thing. So early voting starts by state law, 45 days prior to any primary or general election. Which means that our office itself has to be open, and then the county can provide additional locations for voters in their locality to go vote.
00;09;19;27 - 00;09;42;24
Unknown
Now, early voting, you can go to any early voting center. We print the ballots on demand at those sites so anybody can go to any location. So if you are passing by one on a shopping trip or your way home from work, okay, stop in and vote. It doesn't doesn't matter which location it is. So for this particular election and our office voting starts on September 19th and then all the other locations open on Sunday, October 19th.
00;09;42;24 - 00;10;07;48
Unknown
So the 19th are two dates this time. Those other locations include, in the western part of the county, you can have the Haymarket, library. You've got the Brownsville Courthouse towards the middle of the county. You have our office, which is located in Manassas, right near the courthouse. And then in the eastern part of the county, you have the Dumfries Community Center, you've got the Falso Building and the DMV location.
00;10;07;52 - 00;10;26;58
Unknown
So all of those locations are available, for the last two weeks of early voting, every day except for one day. So. And we do do late voting on Wednesday. So that gives people that are coming home from work an opportunity. We're open till seven okay. On those nights. So should be easy to remember September 19th and October night.
00;10;26;59 - 00;10;47;30
Unknown
Yeah. Did you do that on purpose? Just the calendar. We lucked out along with this election. So you're very good. Now for other options. Although there it seems like there are many different places. And certainly you've expanded the hours. Yeah. But for folks who want to mail in. Yeah. How does that process work? Well, mail voting is available to any voter.
00;10;47;30 - 00;11;02;08
Unknown
It used to be you had to have a reason to vote by mail then. Now it's available for anybody. So you can apply to of to vote by mail per each election. So maybe you're going to be out of town. That's how you prefer you can fill out an application. Just go to our website and you'll find that out.
00;11;02;13 - 00;11;20;07
Unknown
Or you can, ask to receive a mail ballot every election. Make sure you don't miss an election in Virginia, we have every year. The election season really never ends. Yes. That is am we right now? So you can get one every single election if you want either option. But we have a fair number of voters that receive them that way.
00;11;20;12 - 00;11;38;11
Unknown
It can be a great option if you have maybe mobility issues or if you just prefer to vote at home. Take your time, read about the candidates you know on your phone or your computer at home and vote that way. That can be a good option for people. So between that and early voting, a lot of options prior to Election Day.
00;11;38;22 - 00;12;06;50
Unknown
Yeah. All right. So now we talked a lot about early voting, mail in voting, so many options before Election Day for residents who, you know, want to take that option. But for residents who don't take the option and are looking to vote actually on Election Day, you know, what is the process like? I'm thinking polling place and thinking sort of the experience on election day of, of of actually voting.
00;12;07;05 - 00;12;22;58
Unknown
Yeah, yeah. So you are still allowed to vote on election that is allowed. So that is good. That'll be November 4th. Tuesday, November 4th. Our elections are always on a Tuesday. Now, when you're voting on election Day, unlike early voting on Election Day, you need to go to your assigned polling place so you can go on our website.
00;12;22;58 - 00;12;44;56
Unknown
You can find out what that is on the state's website for the state Department of Elections also has that information. So find out where your polling places you be able to look at your sample ballots for your particular location. And that will help you make a voting plan for Election Day. Another thing you should remember on Election Day as well make sure you bring your identification with you.
00;12;44;58 - 00;13;03;46
Unknown
Most people just bring a driver's license, but there are other options available there on our website as well. Things like you can bring a utility bill if you're a military member, you can bring your military ID, so there are different options, but we always encourage people to make a voting plan. Since it's the last day of a voting on election day.
00;13;03;51 - 00;13;21;21
Unknown
Some people do enjoy the event and, you know, the crowds and that kind of thing. So if you do vote that way, that's fine. Just make a plan. The curbside that I, I understand that there was a curbside component. Yeah, yeah. So if you're doing early voting or on Election Day, we do have curbside voting available.
00;13;21;21 - 00;13;41;05
Unknown
So officers at the polling place will come out to your vehicle, assist you with the process, get you checked in and get you a ballot. Scan the ballot for you, confirm that your ballot has been scanned. So all you have to do is pull up to those. That's a good patience. Yeah, actually, a nicer. Especially for, like, seniors or something with.
00;13;41;11 - 00;13;57;36
Unknown
Yeah. All day. Yeah. Well, in some of our locations, you know that the, the distance from the parking lot to the door can be a long way. And sometimes even inside the building, you have to travel a long way. So if you have a mobility issues or you're a senior or it's just more convenient for you, you can pull up to that curbside spot.
00;13;57;40 - 00;14;20;42
Unknown
There's a bell that's there. So you can ring the bell or there's a cell phone number there. Usually our team will be out there to help you, but if not, there's a way to alert someone that you're there so you can, you know, vote from your car at either early voting or on Election Day. You know, I think about there's so many touch points for local government when it comes to sort of transparency, belief in in government.
00;14;20;42 - 00;14;46;23
Unknown
And I think I feel like elections is one of those places where folks really need to believe in and trust. You know, that what they are doing, will count. Yeah. And that there is real validity to, that process. So I say that to say the work that you've done just to make sure you are transparent in the operations of the elections office, is so critically important.
00;14;46;23 - 00;15;10;58
Unknown
So just want to appreciate. Yeah. Appreciate you and the team. Thanks. I think that, you know, voting is not only a fundamental right, we're also a really strong touchpoint for people's interaction with government in the county. So if you look at the agencies that that people interact with the most often, you know, we're second on that list right up there with libraries and parks and recreation for agencies that that people are out with a lot.
00;15;11;03 - 00;15;35;41
Unknown
We're pretty small agency though, and we're pretty small budget. But we have, you know, we hire close to 1000 election officers who are all volunteers from the community that go out there. So at your polling place, you're going to have bipartisan election officers out there on Election Day. So I think it's, not only is it important for the right that we're protecting, but it's also a common interaction point for county residents.
00;15;35;41 - 00;16;03;34
Unknown
And I think we always try to stress to our officers and our staff how important the customer service component of it is, how important the, the people believe in the security and the accountability of the process. Absolutely. So we've tried to sort of promote some, strategic ideas that have helped to give the community more resources, but also just to give people more assurance of, the process.
00;16;03;34 - 00;16;22;47
Unknown
If you're an election skeptic, or maybe you always have had been confident elections, but maybe a little have some concerns. And we want to make sure that we're answering those questions for people and that we're addressing that sort of, you know, issue of the moment, which I've always changes in our field. Absolutely. Some very busy weeks. And months ahead for you.
00;16;22;52 - 00;16;40;23
Unknown
I want to just thank you again for your leadership here in the county. Yeah. And not just to you, but to your team. I mean, so many of them. Go, and I'm sure you thank them every day, but they probably don't get a lot of attention from the public. So, yeah, I just want to appreciate them as well.
00;16;40;28 - 00;17;14;04
Unknown
It's a team of about, 18 people. Yeah, they got a lot of work done. And I appreciate their dedication and their expertise. Thank you all so much for joining us today. We really appreciate it. This conversation so much. Good work happening in the elections office as you could hear and see. For those joining us on YouTube, today, I'll say we said it a few times during the episode, but I want to just remind everyone, where can they go to just find out more information about the elections process or any of the things that we mentioned today?
00;17;14;04 - 00;17;42;25
Unknown
Sure. Votes.org. So that's the ots.org. Go to that website that's going to have all the information for how you vote. Check out your ballot. Find out more about the process. It's all there as always. I love to end these episodes just by thanking the guests first for being such a phenomenal leader, here in the county and thanking you for joining us, for another episode of Shorter Topics, Bigger impact.
00;17;42;25 - 00;17;43;35
Unknown
We will see you next time.