Multnomah County sends two ballot cards for Nov. 3 election

Multnomah County's more than 580,000 registered voters will find something new in their mailboxes starting Oct. 14: two ballot cards instead of one.

One card covers county and city contests decided by ranked choice voting (RCV). The other covers everything else. Elections officials said the split is necessary because RCV ballots contain so many ovals that scanning them alongside other contests slows the tabulation system.

As we reported Sept. 22, this is the county's first time using ranked choice voting for its own races. Portland began using RCV in November 2024. Multnomah County voters approved the change through Measure 26-232 in November 2022.

Which races use ranked choice voting

According to the county's RCV page, four contests on the Nov. 3 ballot will use RCV: Multnomah County chair, District 2 commissioner, Portland city auditor and Portland City Council seats in Districts 3 and 4.

County races use single-winner RCV. Portland City Council uses multi-winner RCV, meaning three candidates win per district even though each voter casts one set of rankings.

How to fill out the ballot

Leah Benson, the county's ranked choice voting project manager, explained the process at a Sept. 22 elections office walkthrough reported by KGW.

The county instructs voters to fill one oval in the Rank 1 column for their top choice. That candidate gets the vote unless eliminated. Ranks 2 through 6 are backup choices.

"That is who your vote is living with unless they're defeated," Benson said. "Ranks 2 through 6, you can rank up to as many candidates that you want, and those are your backup choices."

Ranking additional candidates does not hurt a first choice, according to the county. Voters can rank as few as one candidate. To fix a mistake, draw an "X" over the oval you don't want counted.

The county offers a practice mock election at multco.us/rcv.

Getting your ballot back on time

Elections Director Tim Scott urged voters to plan ahead. A small county test of USPS delivery from one Southeast Portland collection box found transit times ranging from one to six days.

"What we know from that test is that it's not the standard two-day turnaround time that we've seen for decades in Multnomah County," Scott told KATU.

The county recommends mailing ballots by Tuesday, Oct. 27. Voters who mail after that date should go to a USPS branch and get a manual postmark at the counter, Scott said. Ballots must be postmarked by 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3, and arrive within seven days.

During the May 2026 primary, more than 7,300 ballots that arrived during the grace period could not be counted because they lacked a timely postmark, the Oregon Capital Chronicle reported. That 13.1% rejection rate was higher than any prior election.

Voters can also use any 24-hour official ballot drop box or Multnomah County library drop site. The county plans to add two new sites using state funding: one in Corbett and one at the Moose Lodge near Northeast Halsey Street and 162nd Avenue in Gresham. Scott estimated the total will exceed 30 drop sites. Return envelopes are postage-paid.

Ballot security

After arson attacks on drop boxes in Portland and Vancouver during the November 2024 election, the county upgraded its outdoor boxes with GPS monitoring, shock sensors, humidity sensors, door sensors and a new fire suppression system. The previous system limited damage to three Multnomah County ballots, though hundreds burned in Clark County, Washington.

The tabulation network is air-gapped, with no internet connection. Eight cameras record the tabulation room around the clock.