OLYMPIA

In the 2006 primary election, the votes of more than 100,000 Washington residents weren’t counted because the box indicating party affiliation wasn’t checked.

On Feb. 23, the state Senate took steps to prevent that from happening again.

“We all want our vote to count,” said Sen. Darlene Fairley, D-Lake Forest Park. “If you vote a straight ticket and forget to check the box, your vote should still matter.”

Senate Bill 5408, sponsored by Fairley, would ensure that a ballot will be counted when a voter votes only for candidates of one political party in partisan races but fails to select a party in the ballot’s check-off box.

“It’s just common sense,” said Fairley, chair of the Senate Government Operations and Elections Committee. “If we want to encourage people to take part in the election process then we should be making it easier, not harder.”

SB 5408 was approved unanimously and now moves to the House of Representatives for consideration.