Arizona’s primary election was like ‘rehearsal for the Super Bowl,’ Maricopa County supervisor says

With the primary behind them, Maricopa County election officials are now focused on delivering an equally smooth general election.

“Tabulation was done last night, which is incredible. I call this a beautiful, perfect election — as perfect as you can hope,” Maricopa County Supervisor Thomas Galvin told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show on Thursday. “We served the voters well.”

Galvin said a new option allowing voters to show identification when dropping off early ballots helped speed up the process.

“I also want to show appreciation for the bipartisan work by the governor and the Legislature to pass this new law so people can have their ID on-site when they drop off their ballot,” Galvin said. “It just made things go quicker.”

Maricopa County officials prepare for November general election

Election officials hope the primary will serve as a successful test run for the Nov. 3 general election.

“This is kind of like the rehearsal for the Super Bowl,” Galvin said. “A few cycles ago, we had 190 voting centers. In this primary, we had roughly 230.”

Galvin said the primary election gave workers at voting centers valuable experience heading into November.

“All the people working at those voting center sites … have that kind of muscle memory,” Galvin said. “You’re getting reps like you’re doing at football practice during training season, and then you’re getting ready for November.”

Galvin said the county will largely follow the same process used during the primary, but on a larger scale and with more ballots to count. He expects the general election ballot to be long because it will include several referendums.

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