Contact:
Mary Hall, Thurston County Auditor
TCAuditor@co.thurson.wa.us
360.786.5224
711 Washington Relay

OLYMPIA – The Thurston County Auditor’s Office’s Your Neighbors, Your Elections video series has won a national Clearinghouse Award from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), recognized for excellence in voter education and communications. The Auditor’s Office also received an honorable mention in the Accessibility category for “Expanding Access: Public Transit Partnerships for Accessible Elections.”

“Your Neighbors, Your Elections” highlights the real people behind Thurston County’s elections: local residents who take pride in serving their community. By sharing their personal stories, the series builds trust, counters misinformation, and shows that elections are run by neighbors committed to accuracy and integrity. You can view the ”Your Neighbors, Your Elections” videos here.

“Your Neighbors, Your Elections” received top honors in the 2024 “Distinguished Voter Education and Communications Initiatives (Large Jurisdictions)” category, celebrating its innovative use of storytelling to build trust and foster community connection.

“Our goal is to humanize elections. It’s so important for people to know that election workers aren’t strangers. They’re your next-door neighbors, your brother, your grandmother,” said Mary Hall, Thurston County Auditor. “Election integrity is our paramount duty, and this program was a powerful way to help communicate that.”

The “Public Transit Partnerships for Accessible Elections” program extended bus service hours on Election Day, improved ADA access at the Voting Center, and used community vanpools to reduce costs and congestion. By integrating ballot drop box and Voting Center locations into local transit maps, the initiative expanded access and demonstrated an innovative, cost-effective approach to improving elections for both voters and staff.

The Thurston County Auditor’s Office previously earned an EAC honorable mention for its expanded election observer program and has received four National Association of Counties (NACo) Achievement Awards in the past four years. The Financial Services Division has earned 18 consecutive Annual Certificates of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officers Association. The office has also been recognized with several recent statewide honors, including “Auditor of the Year,” “Elections Employee of the Year,” and “Elections Newcomer of the Year.”

“We continue to strive every year to improve how we do our work,” said Hall. “Awards like this recognize only our most visible efforts. Our staff works every day to serve the people of Thurston County through free, fair, secure, and transparent elections; honest and open financial services; and excellent customer service in Licensing, Recording, and Passports.”

###