From critics to champions: How a ballot transparency tool won over Idaho voters—and inspired Mesa County
When Ada County launched a ballot audit tool built by a small independent company, no one knew what to expect. But what followed surprised even the clerk who helped shape it.
Election skeptics became supporters, recount demands dropped and voters started tracking their own ballots—sometimes using nothing more than a $2 bill.
What began as a simple idea sketched on napkins between an Idaho election official and a civic-minded data entrepreneur would grow into a public-facing ballot verification platform now used by counties in multiple states, including Mesa County, Colorado.