El Paso County Clerk and Recorder debuts 39 new ballot security cameras

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)-- New security cameras are debuting this week at ballot boxes in El Paso County.

After nine long months of installations, all 39 ballot drop-off locations will feature the state of the art cameras.

"So not only are we meeting current statute and secretary of state rules, we are actually exceeding it where we can actually keep this data for up to 10 years," said Steve Schleiker, El Paso County Clerk and Recorder.

He said prior to this new technology, his department had a very 'old-fashioned' way of monitoring the 39 ballot boxes across the county. 

"We did not know if the cameras went down, we were not notified if they lost wifi, you know just anything that occurred, we were not notified," added Schleiker, referencing the previous cameras.

Schleiker said that every day for the past couple of years the employees here at the clerk and recorder office had to go and check each individual camera ballot box to make sure it was operating correctly.

"So it was one of those things where it was not efficient. It was not effective you know what so ever," said Schleiker

With the new system, the department receives updates multiple times a day by text message and email. Eventually, anyone will be able to watch the cameras remotely.

"Now it cost nothing, it's right on out there so anybody that wants this footage that has been eliminated and so anybody they no longer have to submit a cora request and be burdened by government red tape," Schleiker said.

For more details on how to log into this new system, visit the live security and surveillance website for the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder.