At our May Annual Meeting, Denver League had the pleasure to welcome back the former Director of Denver Elections Division, Amber McReynolds. She has been instrumental in creating what is now called “the gold standard” for voting access and ballot processing procedures in Denver, in Colorado, and across the country. McReynolds views LWV as the most important organization supporting elections and civics around the U.S. She expressed that members’ attitudes and what actions are taken demonstrate LWV’s value to the community at-large.
She specifically praised the “critical role” several Denver League members played after 2006 in the implementation of Denver’s new voting system. In 2009, Denver instituted ballot tracking administratively, without needing to change a law or procedure. The need for ballot tracking became apparent because of the large volume of phone calls from Denver voters asking the status of their ballot. Where was it in the system? Now 150 million voters nationwide have access to ballot tracking.
In 2013, the core of Denver’s election process model expanded statewide with the passage of HB13-1302 that McReynolds calls, the “most monumental change to election systems ever.” Her vision for voting is that election processes should be secure, acceptable, available, transparent, convenient, equitable, and reliable. Voting process goals should not be limited to access or integrity but, should also include exceptional service and be universal by making it responsive.
Local election officials are hurt by disinformation or misstatements according to McReynolds. They take the brunt of phone calls, threats, etc. Their role is, and should be viewed as administrative only, not political. McReynolds recommends that all Secretaries of State and local election officials (whoever runs elections) should not be registered to one political party because party affiliation can make their job more difficult. For example, why does an elected coroner need to belong to one or another political party?
McReynolds also expressed concerns about unaffiliated or “independent” voters who make up half of the registered voters in Colorado and across the country. In a number of states, voters who have registered as unaffiliated may not participate in a primary election. Thus, they are disenfranchised by the two-party system that runs Congress. In Colorado, voters who register as “independent” are sent ballots for both major political parties during a primary election. However, voters may choose only one ballot on which to record their vote.
Since leaving her position at Denver’s Election Division, McReynolds has served as Executive Director of the National Vote at Home Institute and Coalition. In 2020, this non-profit helped 45 states respond to voter needs during the COVID Pandemic when jurisdictions added ballot drop boxes and ballot tracking to their voting processes, like Colorado’s election procedures.
In 2021, President Joseph R. Biden appointed Ms. McReynolds to serve a seven-year term on the U.S. Postal Service’s independent Board of Governors that directs the exercise of the powers of the Postal Service, directs and controls its expenditures, among other duties. She was elected as chair of this Board by her fellow governors in 2025. League members learned that no more than five members of this Board of Governors may belong to the same political party. She pointed out that the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is the only organization in the U.S. that impacts all of us (businesses, governments, and residents) six of seven days each week.
McReynolds concluded her presentation with a brief history of the USPS. Highlights include that the first woman postmistress was hired in Maryland in 1783 and vote-by-mail was first used during the Civil War. Abe Lincoln had briefly served as a postmaster and knew USPS’s capabilities! USPS was the first government entity to hire formerly enslaved people. It promoted the use of trains and then airplanes to distribute mail, which led to the commercial use of planes in the U.S. Other famous mail carriers or employees of USPS include: Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergh, Bing Crosby, and Rock Hudson. USPS delivered one million COVID testing kits in an average of 1.1 days. Processing election ballots is a routine part of their daily deliveries.
Amber McReynolds conveyed that Denver and Leaguers, especially, can feel proud of our role in supporting election processes and civics. However, we also heard that improvements in the election process system are still needed. For example, although Denver’s elected election official runs in a nonpartisan race, other Colorado county election officials and our Secretary of State are registered to a political party. We thank Amber McReynolds for sharing her time and invaluable experience as she continues to pursue the goals and visions for the best election processing system yet!
Sarah McCarthy, Co-Director of Program/Advocacy