EVERETT — Replacing paper logs and disconnected databases, Snohomish County Elections received national recognition, winning an award for a program dubbed “SnoBat” that boosts ballot accuracy, efficiency and transparency.
Snohomish County Elections received the 2026 Professional Practices Eagle Award from the National Association of Election Officials for exemplary use of technology and outstanding innovations in election administration through its development of Snohomish Batch Tracking, nicknamed SnoBat.
Built using existing county infrastructure, in conjunction with the County’s Information Technology Department, and adaptable Microsoft tools, SnoBat integrates data from several election administration systems into a single secure platform, according to the Elections department. The centralized system replaces paper logs and disconnected databases, allowing elections staff to track batches of ballots with greater efficiency, transparency, and accuracy from the time they are received until the election is completed and results are certified.
“This national award recognizes our team’s commitment to accuracy, transparency, and accountability in elections,” Snohomish County Auditor, Garth Fell, said in a written statement. “SnoBat helps our team do their work more efficiently and provides real-time visibility into each step of ballot processing. We’re honored that our approach has been acknowledged on a national level.”
The award was presented to Snohomish County Elections on August 20 at the 41st Annual National Conference in Kansas City, Missouri.
SnoBat is a cost-effective and data-driven platform that strengthens ballot chain-of-custody, improves operational accuracy, and enhances how ballots are tracked and accounted for during every step of the ballot processing lifecycle, according to its creators.
Snohomish County processes ballots for more than half-a-million voters in federal, state, and local elections. In recent years, as the number of completed ballots increased and were returned in an election cycle, operational requirements became more complex, prompting Snohomish County Elections to explore a unified, efficient process to manage voted ballots. In collaboration with the County’s IT department, Snohomish County staff designed and implemented SnoBat to meet that need.
“Our partnership with the Elections Division is a great example of how technology can solve real-world operational challenges without the added price tag. By using low-code Microsoft tools, we built a scalable system that can grow with the county,” said Snohomish County Department of Information Technology Director and CIO, Viggo Forde.
In a written statement, Snohomish County Elections says, “By leveraging tools and technology the county already maintains, Snohomish County Elections was able to modernize elections operations without expensive vendor contracts.”
The Eagle Award is presented annually at the National Association of Elected Officials’ National Conference as part of its Professional Practices Program, which highlights excellence in election professionalism. A national committee of professional election administrators selects the award recipients. The National Association of Election Officials, is the largest national professional association for election officials in the United States. It is a non-profit association of voter registrars, election administrators, and service providers throughout the United States and the U.S. territories.
The Snohomish County Elections Department is a division of the Snohomish County Auditor’s Office. which includes 46 public employees. The nonpartisan Auditor’s Office registers voters and conducts elections; issues pet and kennel licenses; responds to animal-related safety incidents; licenses cars, boats, and other vehicles; records property and other legal documents; issues marriage licenses; and performs many other customer-focused government services.
Fell was elected Auditor in 2019 and reelected in 2023, overseeing more than 100 elections during his 27-year career in the department. Fell also serves as president of the Washington State Association of County Auditors and as a member of the Washington State Recording Standards Commission.