Dump truck crashes into ballot box near Aurora church, sparking community concerns about voting rights
Voting is a fundamental civil right, but some Aurora residents are questioning whether the process is actually democratic.
The questions began Oct. 27 when a fully loaded dump truck struck and damaged a ballot box outside of a church in Aurora.
The truck hit the ballot box so hard that it was ripped out of the concrete pad it was bolted into. The ballot box will not be replaced before Election Day, Nov. 7.
“Is this a coincidence that shortly after the ballots are dropped, the ballot drop box gets damaged and removed and I’m a candidate for City Council at large, and it’s at my church with my name on the outside of the church and you can’t tell me who hit it and you cannot replace it until after the election?” said Thomas Mayes, the pastor at Living Water Christian Center Church, where the box was removed.
Mayes is one of four candidates running for two at-large City Council seats on Tuesday. Two of the candidates are incumbents.
Adams County officials said the crash was unintentional and that all ballots were still secured after the crash. But the ballot box won’t be replaced in time for a planned get-out-the-vote event on Sunday, Adams County Clerk and Recorder Josh Zygielbaum said.
“Unfortunately, it’s too close to the election to pour new concrete in, to set, before they can replace the box,” said Zygielbaum, whose office manages elections in Adams County.