Washington elections chief proposes AI pilot for ballot signature verification

By: Paul W. Taylor,

Outlets: TVW

Published: October 22, 2026

Words: 263

Last Updated: 2 weeks, 3 days ago

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Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs wants to test artificial intelligence to verify signatures on mail ballots, potentially beginning in 2027.

Hobbs told TVW’s Inside Olympia that AI technology already used in the financial industry could help election officials compare signatures on ballot envelopes with those in voter registration records.

“I actually wanna launch it as soon as possible, hopefully next year as a pilot,” Hobbs said.

Washington’s 39 counties currently rely on trained election workers to …

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