Election officials in Maricopa County will count ballots this year in the same building that protesters nearly stormed in 2020.
But soon they will start counting the presidential elections in a new facility.
County officials want to move their entire election operation — storing ballots, verifying signatures, counting votes and more — to a new office at 801 West Jefferson Street. They are seeking an accelerated construction plan that would see the elections department and some Recorder’s Office staff move in before the start of the 2028 election cycle.
“As our democracy evolves, our electoral infrastructure must evolve as well,” said Supervisor Bill Gates. “We aim to build the facility to streamline the efficiency of the tabulation process and future-proof our election processes, protecting them from emerging threats and challenges.”
The new facility will be built on land on the western edge of downtown Phoenix, adjacent to the county’s Forensic Science Center.
It is less than a mile from the current county elections headquarters, which is located in the Warehouse District just south of Phoenix’s urban core. The service would leave the 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, multi-story building with warehouse space, offices, loading docks and an underground level. That is about as many square meters as three and a half football fields.
Preliminary budget documents put the price tag at about $142 million.
Construction is expected to begin later this year. Gates said he expects the final product to be “state-of-the-art.”
‘A beacon of democracy’
The county has more than doubled the number of registered voters in recent decades. It started the millennium with about 1.1 million registered voters, and now has more than 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 that every eligible vote is counted and every voice is heard,” he said.
The new construction also comes amid increased concerns about the safety of election officials in the county, who have experienced a wave of intimidation and threats in recent years.
Hundreds of protesters, some armed, gathered outside MCTEC in 2020 with flags, signs and microphones. Outraged by voting conspiracies, they gathered at the bottom of the stairs leading to the building’s entrance.
The crowds were smaller and faced an increased law enforcement presence in 2022, but county officials still faced safety concerns in determining how to allow media access to MCTEC and transport temporary workers to and from the facility.
Security concerns and population pressure have already prompted other provinces to build new election facilities.
Coconino County recently opened its new election center, which has extensive security protocols. Officials said the building is designed to provide maximum transparency without sacrificing election integrity.
“I hope everyone who comes through here sees how transparent it is, how safe it is, how well staffed and how open it is,” Coconino County Supervisor Jeronimo Vasquez said during the building’s grand opening. “Because ultimately we are trying to show that everyone’s voice counts and that this is done fairly.”
Meanwhile, Pinal County election officials are preparing to move into a brand new building in Florence this year. Officials say the county’s current elections office, located in Coolidge, is too cramped to handle an increasing number of ballots as the population grows.
Sasha Hupka is responsible for the county government and elections board for the Arizona Republic. Reach her at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. 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 election center
