With more voters and security risks than ever, Maricopa County plans new elections center

Maricopa County election officials will count ballots this year in the same building that protesters nearly stormed in 2020.

But soon, they'll be tallying presidential votes in a new facility.

County officials aim to move their entire election operation — ballot storage, signature verification, vote counting and more — to a new office at 801 West Jefferson Street. They're pursuing an expedited construction plan that would have Elections Department and some Recorder's Office employees moved in before the start of the 2028 election cycle.

"As our democracy evolves, so must our electoral infrastructure," said Supervisor Bill Gates. "We aim to build the facility to streamline efficiencies in the tabulation process and to future-proof our electoral processes, safeguarding them against emerging threats and challenges."

The new facility will be built on a piece of land at the western edge of downtown Phoenix, adjacent to the county's Forensic Science Center.

It's less than a mile from the county's current elections headquarters, which sits in the Warehouse District just south of Phoenix's urban core. The shift would leave that building, known as the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center, empty.

Renderings of the planned building and other details of the project are not yet available.

But pre-construction documents show county officials are considering a 200,000 square foot building multistory building with warehouse space, offices, loading docks and a subterranean level. That's about the same square footage as three-and-a-half football fields.

Preliminary budget documents put the pricetag at roughly $142 million.

Construction is expected to begin later this year. Gates said he expect the finished product to be "state-of-the-art."

'A beacon of democracy'

The county has seen its number of registered voters more than double in recent decades. It started the millennium with around 1.1 million registered voters, and now has upwards of 2.3 million.

Gates said the new building will give election workers more space to speed up ballot processing.

"This facility will be a beacon of democracy where we ensure every eligible vote is counted and every voice heard," he said.

The new construction also comes amid increased security concerns for county election officials, who have seen a wave of harassment and threats in recent years.

Hundreds of protesters, some armed, gathered outside MCTEC with flags, signs and microphones in 2020. Incensed by voting conspiracies, they gathered at the bottom of the stairs leading to the entrance of the building.

The crowd was smaller and met with a larger law enforcement presence in 2022, but county officials still faced security challenges while determining how to allow media access to MCTEC and shuttle temporary employees to and from the facility.

Safety concerns and population pressures have already prompted other counties to build new election facilities.

Coconino County recently opened its new elections center, which boasts extensive security protocols. Officials said the building is designed to offer maximum transparency without sacrificing election integrity.

"I hope what everybody who comes through here sees is just how transparent it is, how secure it is, how well-staffed and how open it is," said Coconino County Supervisor Jeronimo Vasquez during the building's grand opening. "Because at the end of the day we’re trying to show that everybody’s vote counts and it's done fairly."

Meanwhile, Pinal County election officials are preparing to move this year to a brand-new facility in Florence. Officials say the county's current elections office, located in Coolidge, is too cramped to process an increasing number of ballots as its population booms.

Sasha Hupka covers county government and election administration for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @SashaHupka. Follow her on Instagram or Threads: @sashahupkasnaps.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 'A beacon of democracy': Maricopa County plans new elections center