Kentucky election law puts early voting at odds with education in Bullitt County

It’s the final bell at Mount Washington Elementary School on a Monday afternoon. Students line up in what they call “The Great Hall,” where two main classroom hallways intersect with the gym and the library.

It’s also a space Bullitt County may need for voting.

In the midst of the daily chaos that comes with small children queuing for the bus, Bullitt County Schools head of operations Troy Wood demonstrates how voters would navigate the area.

“They’d roll through these double doors, walk through this main lobby area and access the gymnasium that way,” Wood said, spinning around and pointing out each intersection. “We'd have to shut off these two main hallways if students were on site.”

Wood says just one police officer would be available to stand in the hallway, separating kids from the general public. The district was advised that would violate state school safety laws. In 2022, a miscommunication between the schools and the clerk left schools unguarded during voting.

So Bullitt County schools said no to early voting.

“It’s a decision that you don’t win either way,” Wood said. “If you cancel school, folks are going to be upset, and if you show up, they're going to be upset because you put kids at risk. So, [it’s a] tough call.”

Early voting is still relatively new in Kentucky. It began during the pandemic, and gained popularity. Legislators are updating laws to make early voting more accessible. Officials who have to carry them out say those laws can have unintended consequences. Now, Bullitt County is struggling to find a balance between safe education and efficient democracy.

Bullitt County Clerk Kevin Mooney said he respects the school system.

He knows they have to keep kids safe and he doesn't want to disrupt educational days. But he has an important job, too: he needs to make voting as easy as possible and he thinks “these school buildings are the best facilities in our county.”

“It’s not where I wanted to be on purpose. We swore an oath to go on and uphold the constitution and do things,” Mooney said. “I'm hoping to be a good service for my voting public.”

Mooney is preparing for what many officials expect to be a contentious presidential election. In addition, he’s under some extra scrutiny. Back in 2022, he wound up on local news for a problem every election official dreads: long lines.

The delays prompted state lawmakers to grill election officials . Former state representative Russell Webber specifically called out Bullitt County’s long lines. He told election officials he personally had trouble finding parking on election day and waited nearly two hours to cast a ballot.

“All three of the major center locations, I heard from individuals all day. They were parking in the grass and they were creating their own parking places in order for folks to get in there to vote,” Webber told state election officials. “I’m raising these as red flags for the future. These are things we need to be aware of and we need to be prepared for.”

County clerks expect turnout to be even higher this year as Kentucky voters prepare to cast a ballot for the next president and statewide issues like medical cannabis and private education vouchers .

Without the school district’s permission, Mooney seemed unable to use the schools for early voting. Then something changed.

A new law complicates things

Bullitt County Superintendent Bacon said it was on June 28 of this year when he received a letter in the mail from Mooney. It notified the school district of the new state law that gives county clerks the authority to designate any public building as an early voting location. It also announced the clerk’s intention to use some schools for early voting.

Back at the school, operations director Wood said they’re frustrated by that.

“As the law changed, the law said he could commandeer our schools, if so desired,” Wood said. “So that’s what they went by.”

The school district and the clerk met multiple times to try and compromise. The school district scouted out alternative sites including a local flea market and a church. Meanwhile, the clerk swapped out some schools on the district’s request to use elementary and middle schools instead of high schools.

The school’s lawyer also posited that another state law would force the entire school district to close if even one school was used for early voting.

As progress stalled, the secretary of state even personally went to examine polling sites that the clerk and the school district independently proposed.

Ultimately they reached an impasse. By late August, Bullitt County was the only place in the entire state that hadn’t settled on an election plan.

The final decision ended up with the State Board of Elections, who is tasked with approving election plans.

State Board of Elections member Albert Chandler said the intersection of these competing public goods — school safety and efficient elections — put them in a difficult position.

“The General Assembly may even have to take this up in its next session to fix it,” Chandler said. “Whenever the legislature passes laws, so often, there are unintended consequences, things people hadn’t thought about. Now we’ve got a real world problem that needs to be fixed.”

After hours of discussion, the board eventually approved the clerk’s plan in a 4-2 vote. That means it’s final: three Bullitt County schools will be used for early voting starting on Halloween.

The school district ultimately decided to cancel classes — but they aren’t happy about it.

“What I want the people to understand is…our calendar is going to be drastically changed because of one man’s decision to push his agenda,” Bullitt County School Board Chair Darrell Coleman said in a meeting.

After they decided to close schools for early voting, the district issued a statement asking the legislature to prevent schools from being used for early voting in the future.

"I am disappointed that 119 counties recognize the problems this creates, yet we are the one county left to deal with this issue," superintendent Jesse Bacon said in the statement. "We ask our community to support these legislative efforts by contacting local legislators and expressing the need for a statewide policy that keeps schools focused on education.”

Correction: This story has been updated to identify Albert Chandler as a board member.

State government and politics reporting is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.