High Turnout Wide Margins recently traveled to the 40th annual Election Center conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, and spoke with election administrations and officials from across the county about how they do the work of elections in their communities.
In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Judge Yashiba Glenn Blanchard in Jefferson County, Alabama. She was elected as the county’s probate judge in November of 2024, which means she hears probate cases – and is the chief election official for the county.
They spoke about the decentralized nature of Alabama’s elections administration, what she’s learned about elections since coming into the role, and how she hopes to change the administration of elections in her community.
High Turnout, Wide Margins Credits:
Managing Editor: Rebecca Smith
Managing Producer: Aaron Hay
Associate Producer: Katie Quinn
Digital Producer: Mark Johnson
Transcription of the episode is as follows:
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Let me tell you what's funny about Alabama is that all of our probate judges are not lawyers. Some counties are not required. The three largest counties – Mobile, Jefferson County and Madison County. Those larger counties, they require us to be lawyers, and I can see why because not only are you, you know, judging, but you're over the elections, and so, it comes with, you have been – I guess they’re wanting you to have a lot of experience with the law. They have free lead to do what they want to do in regards to that because, you know, that's the law in Alabama. It’s most of your probate judges – they're the chief election officials of their elections. So, they're the individuals who run the elections.
[High Turnout Wide Margins Introduction]
Brianna Lennon: Welcome back to another exciting episode of High Turnout Wide Margins. My name is Brianna Lennon. I am one of the hosts. I am the County Clerk for Boone County, Missouri. I'm here with my co-host –
Eric Fey: Eric Fey, Director of Elections in St. Louis County, Missouri.
Brianna Lennon: And today we are at Election Center’s 40th annual conference, and very excited, very, very excited to talk to, and you can introduce yourself –
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Judge Yashiba Glenn Blanchard, Chief Election Official of Jefferson County, Alabama.
Brianna Lennon: I really, like, we cannot stress enough how excited we are to learn more about Alabama’s election structure. So, first, before we get to that, we want to talk about your origin story because I did overhear at lunch that you have had a very interesting career path, and I would love to hear more about how you ended up in the role that you're in now.
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Well, I really have had an interesting career path. Fresh out of high school, I did not know what I actually wanted to do, but I knew I wanted to advocate for those who didn't have a voice and so, typical – go to a two year college, get an associate's degree, decided that I wanted to be a lawyer, and so, after I left my two year college, went to the University of Alabama, got my bachelor's degree, then got a master's degree, and then went to law school.
And so, I was THE Elle Woods, and I wanted to conquer the world, and so, basically, opened up a small private practice, which grew into a large private practice. I had an awesome mentor, Wilson Dinsmore. He had been practicing long before the bar. They didn't even have to sit for the bar when he started practicing, all they had to do was go to law school. So, I had this magnificent mentor that showed me the ropes with law and pretty much led the way, and I became an amazing attorney.
Practiced. Did plaintiff's litigation, a lot of estate planning, probate work, guardianship cases, conservative cases, adoption cases, property cases. I've even done some class action cases, as well. I would divorce people. I was a domestic relations attorney, and then just did a lot of transactional work. And so,I did very, very well.
Now that I'm a judge, I look back at my career, and I did, I did an awesome job by myself, and I made a lot of money, and so, while advocating for my clients in probate court, I ran across a specific case, and then I didn’t like the way it turned out, and so, it kind of fueled me to run for judge, you know, my parents have always taught me – if it's something you don't like, change it, and so, I prayed about it, and I jumped into the race.
And so, when I jumped into the race, I wind[ed]up being in a runoff. I beat my opponent by 62%, and then we had the general and I won that. And so, the way that it's set up in Alabama – in Jefferson County, Alabama, is the person that wins the place one probate judge seat, they automatically become the presiding judge of that county, and also they inherit the title of chief election official, and so, that's how I jump into elections by winning that seat, and so, that's where I am now.
Eric Fey: I don't know if any other state has a structure like that – did you want to be the chief election official when you were running for it? I mean, it seemed like you were focused a lot on the judicial aspect of it.
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Well, I mean, honestly speaking, I knew what came with the position, what came with the post, and so, when I ran, I knew that there were three hats to that post. I would not only be sitting on the bench as a presiding judge, but I knew that I would be the department head over 60+ employees, and then also the chief election official. And, again, you know, elections is something that's a passion of mine because it's advocating for those who don't really have a voice, or those who have a voice but don't have a platform, and so, it was not an issue with me stepping into that role. It was actually something that I thought was very interesting that came along with me being a judge.
Brianna Lennon: So, of the 60 people that you have that work for you – how many work in elections?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: So, to be honest with you – we have a system that's kind of unique and peculiar in Jefferson County. We have several individuals that assist us with elections, and so, we have what we call an “Appointing Board,” where I sit as the chair, our magnificent county Sheriff sits as a member of the appointing board, and our circuit clerk sits as a member of the appointing board. Outside of the appointing board, which is the election commission, I have an elections' coordinator. She's magnificent. She's been doing this for a while. And then we also have our registrar, who has his own department, and then we have general services that pretty much houses our election equipment and assists us with elections too, as well. So, it's a lot of moving parts, but we all work very well together, and so, to answer your question – only one full time elections clerk,
Brianna Lennon: It just sounds so interesting to have all these moving pieces, and so, when you go into this role, you're automatically thrust into, like, working with other elected officials and appointed officials and things like that. So, what, like, what does your day look like when you're trying to do all the things that you're-
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: So, and let me, let me make a correction on that. So, a lot of times with elections – although I have one full time election coordinator – what has been done historically before I, that my predecessors did that I've done too, as well, is we bar clerks from the probate court off the counter, which can be counter intuitive, in a sense, because you're pulling them away from what they normally do, and it's not someone that does that 100% of the time, and I'm an advocate for making sure that individuals who do jobs, they perform that job, you know, all the time, because it's, you know, it brings a lot of experience and skill to the job when you're not being cross trained and pulled from other jobs.
But back to your question – what was the question? Because I kind of, I wanted to clear that up.
Brianna Lennon: I'm sure there is no one typical day, but what does it look like to manage all of those things in one role? Like, how do you do all?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: You know, I feel like I'm built for this for some reason. When I ran that law firm, I experienced so much, you know, so many moving parts, and I think I'm built for it. So, a typical day for me is sitting on the bench when there's not elections, but to still plan for elections. Also, I just got – we just had budget hearings last week, and so, it's multitasking. I would say that I have an amazing staff, support staff that helps me and says, “Hey, Judge, don't forget to,” you know, “don't forget,” and so, I have that.
And then I do, like work-life balance too, as well, you know, I take time for myself. I do Spanish classes, and I work out and things like that.
And so, a typical day is sitting on the bench when there's no elections, but still plan for elections. If there's tasks that I want my election staff to do – we do that all year round. A lot of individuals think that you only plan for elections when an election is actually happening, and that's not, I mean, you guys know, you do elections, you know, you don't do that. You can get caught, you know, in a bad situation, and so, we really plan, like, around – I've been there for, like, right at seven months, and that's something that I always do, is, if I'm hearing cases, I've got my coordinator working on something, and then also trying to come up with different ideas on how to make the process easier for the residents of Jefferson County.
Recently, I've been exploring having election centers, and that's something that we've been working on. I've got a consultant that's putting some data together to give to me so I can present to our commission to see if I can pull that out. And so, it's just planning and hearing cases and running a department daily.
I really think that running that law office for the last 11, 12 years. Having to be the HR person, having to be the attorney, if my paralegal was out sick – having to be the paralegal. It caused a lot of things to be thrown at me, and I learned how to just catch it, you know, and how to deal with it. And so, I don't rush things. I let things come naturally, and, you know, I just pace myself, and that's, I mean, it's been good for me.
Eric Fey: In terms of size, where does your county fit in Alabama? You're one of the larger counties?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: We’re the largest county.
Eric Fey: You're the largest?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Yes, we're the largest. We're the largest county in Alabama. I get a lot of questions about the size of my election staff because they say that we should be the protege for all elections in Alabama, but, you know, hey, you know, sometimes things come with time and it comes with different thoughts. I love all of my colleagues, my predecessors. I look at elections the same way I look at the bench – I look at it as a huge art museum and everybody comes in with a blank canvas, and so, you know, if you got art already in the museum, you just add, you know, paint your canvas and add to it. And so, a lot of times change happens, but it didn't happen with the people before you. And so, I'm interested in change.
Eric Fey: I just wanted to ask a quick follow up on size. Your county – being the largest in the state – you've got staff members, you've, like you said, you've got a lot of responsibilities. So, you've got folks working for you that have to keep the trains kind of running on time. In the most rural parts of Alabama, is the probate judge, in addition to doing their courtroom duties, are they also doing some very, are they left to their own devices do some very hands-on stuff?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Yes, absolutely, absolutely. Let me tell you what's funny about Alabama is that all of our probate judges are not lawyers. Some counties are not required. The three largest counties – Mobile, Jefferson County and Madison County – I know you were talking about your son going to camp there – those, the larger counties, they require us to be lawyers, and I can see why because not only are you, you know, judging, but you're over the elections, and so, it comes with, you have been – I guess they’re wanting you to have a lot of experience with the law. But to answer your question, they have free lead to do what they want to do in regards to that because, you know, that's the law in Alabama – most of your probate judges, they're the chief election officials of their elections. So, they're the individuals who run the elections, conduct the manner in which they're, you know, they're held.
[High Turnout Wide Margins Midbreak]
Brianna Lennon: So, for training, because I know our judges have their own, they have their own association, they do their own judicial training when they win election or when they're appointed, and then we also have a clerk association for election related things and then any other job. Is there, what does the association world look like in Alabama, or is there any kind of orientation that happens when you come into one of these roles?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: That's an awesome question. No, it's kind of like just pick up where you are and learn, you know, the ropes, and so, what I've done, coming in, since I was elected last year in November, is conference, conference, conference – to try to get my training and education, you know, up to date. We have some, like I said, we have some amazing individuals who have been in these roles that can kind of assist you, but I don't think it's anything like learning stuff yourself, you know? And so, no – that’s something that we need to do. It’s something I've been exploring with my staff, as far as, like, having SOPs and, like, disaster plans for elections and things like that. And, like I said, you know, it wasn't done prior to – but there's nothing wrong with doing it now. Just to make sure that everything is, you know, is in accord.
But no – they don't give us any training or anything. You just come in and you know exactly what you have to do, and you just decide your method of doing it, and so, my method of doing it is I've joined several organizations – the National College for Probate Judges, Alabama Probate Association, and there’s several others that I've joined. So, I've been trying to get my experience and my training up to par for my role, to assist me in my role.
Brianna Lennon: What's the relationship like with the Secretary of State's office?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Oh, we have a good relationship with [them]. So, right now, you know, of course, that's where we get our instructions from for elections. I love our Secretary of State's Office. They're very easy to get in contact with – communication is open, and so, I have a very good relationship with them, and I'm told that previous individuals who were there prior to me had good relationships with them too, as well. They're very supportive. And so, I can say that, yeah, they are.
Brianna Lennon: Well, in some states, like, they kind of just leave all of the counties to their own devices, In some states, they're really, like, hands on, and so I wasn't sure –
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: No, they're not as hands on. They kind of tell us what they want, and we kind of, you know, push through and get it done. But, you know, they give us the opportunity to do what we want to do. I had just recently called someone from the Secretary of State's office, maybe about three, four weeks ago, and he's like, “I want to remind you, however you want to do your elections, you're the chief of the elections. Do what you want to do,” you know, “as long as it's within regulations.” And so they encourage us to do different things, and so, that's one thing that I do like about my job.
Eric Fey: I'd like to understand better how the probate judge – and from what I understand what you said, like, each county has a board of registrars that does the voter registration piece.
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Yes.
Eric Fey: So, how do you all work together to get everything ready for election day? You know, the precinct registers, or whatever you use for people to sign in – how does your office have to work with this board of registrars?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: So, that's a great question. So, normally, what we do leading up to the election – we have what we call Election Commission meetings, and it's open to all the departments, all the county heads, and, normally, outsiders even show up. And what we do is everybody gets the opportunity – I'm the person that leads the meeting as the chief election official, and it's recorded minutes with my assistant, and we have the sheriff there, or he has his proxy there. We have the circuit clerk there. She has her proxy there, if she's not there, and we have the registrar there, and we just go around the room and everybody tells what's going on as to planning, to make sure that everything is set up. Prior to me, I think that they only did it, like, one time prior to the election, but, you know me – being Yashiba – I have it, like, twice, and, you know, we're coming up to a huge election, I'm probably gonna have it maybe every week until the election, just to make sure, since everybody's so separated, that we're all on the same accord.
Brianna Lennon: So, like, who manages polling place – like getting polling places in, or training poll workers, or things like –
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: So, I will break that down in regards to the different duties. So, as far as the register, the voters registration list – that's going to be our registrar's office. He handles all of that. Poll training – it comes down from my office. Legal notices of the elections – it comes from my office, so it's going to be my election coordinator. The individuals who house, the department that houses my tabulators and all of my equipment – that's going to be general services. The security of the ballots – that's going to be the Sheriff's Department, as far as making sure that we've got security traveling with the ballots and getting everything to the polling precincts, and making sure that everything comes back safely.
So, you know, it's just, it's a difference. Normally, in a perfect world, everything would be housed in the same place, but it's not. But it does work. Me, personally, I think it would be more efficient in the same place, and that's something that I'm looking to explore, like, I said earlier. But with what we have set up now, I give kudos to the individuals who chip in to make it happen, and you know, as an election official, that if it wasn't for the heart of the employees and the clerks that you have, this stuff wouldn't happen.
Eric Fey: So, along those lines of maybe, like, you said, having things work better, or centralized things, have you, or some of your colleagues, talked with people in the state legislature about changing any of that.
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Well, so, I mean – what I'm doing now is, it's just exploratory. I'm just exploring different like – Madison County probate judge is actually one of my mentors. They set us up with mentorships when we first came in, but that's just like asking questions about anything, not just elections, just period. But Judge Barger in Madison County, he has an election center, and he's been giving me, you know, all of the advantages that it is, you know, to have one. Also, J.C. Love, III, who's the probate judge in Montgomery County – who's one of my mentors, as well – he has an election center. It's staffed with, I think he said, like, five or seven people, and so, you know, they've been giving me, kind of like the protege of what it would be like to have one. And so, one of the funny things they always tell me is that we normally look to the bigger counties to see what to do, but it's very impressive that y'all are asking, you know you're asking us what to do. And so, ultimately, I'm just trying to explore and trying to get a hub where I can have all of this stuff set in one place, so accessibility for the residents of Jefferson County will be there.
Eric Fey: So, setting the structure of the election office aside – are there any issues that probate judges have worked with the legislature on? Or does the legislature reach out to you all sometimes when they're thinking about changing up election laws or anything?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: You know what, I haven't, I haven't had any to reach out to me. The Probate Judges’ Association, we have a lobbyist that comes back and tells us things, and he lobbied for us a lot. But for the most part, I haven't heard anything from the state in regards to anything, and so, again, like I said, the Secretary of State is very supportive, even when I spoke to someone there about getting an election center, they were spot on it, like, “Yes, that's a good idea,” and so, like I said, they support us a lot. I can't say that they don't because they do, and so, ultimately, I want it to come to fruition, so, you know, we can be up and moving.
Brianna Lennon: I'm curious about how – I know that the registrar probably handles a lot of the voter registration outreach, but since you have the counting and things like that, have there been – is there voter education initiatives or things about how the process works that you have either seen done well by other counties, or exploring to see, like – I feel like if I were a voter there, I'd have a little trouble navigating the system if I was trying to figure out who I talked to about whatever issue is happening, like, “Oh, I know to go to the registrar, but after that, who's going to tell me when the election is and who's going to tell me where my polling place is?”
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: Well, that's a great question. And, again, that's why I'm exploring an election center because that will be a one stop shop for questions, education and everything. But to speak to a point, as to your question – prior to me coming aboard, we never had a Facebook page, an Instagram page. We didn't have nothing, but now we have a Facebook page that gives all kinds of information, information as far as the triggering of elections, the date of the elections, where to go to register to vote. I've even initiated radio ads to notify residents of the date of elections and “don't forget to vote as a reminder,” and so, these are some of the things that I have been doing myself seven months in, and that I plan to make larger, a larger platform to get the word out about elections, and so ,it's something that I've been working on. It's something I'm going to continue to do.
At first, it wasn't – the word wasn't getting out, you know? Well, I can't say it wasn't getting out, but it wasn't being placed in different mediums, and, you know, as time has evolved, you know, communication mediums have too. You've got radio as a medium, you've got social media as a medium, you've got text messaging as a medium, and so, I'm ready to explore all of those options. I can't do it in seven months, but hopefully I can do it throughout my term and kind of get the word out there because I think that that's what we're supposed to do as election officials, is get the word out there.
Brianna Lennon: Is there anything that you wanted to add that we didn't cover?
Yashiba Glenn Blanchard: We need to talk about elections, voters’ rights, voters’ education. I think it's something that needs to be talked about a lot because it's not. I've known it to be taboo, but I think it needs to be put out there. I think our younger generations are more and more excited about voting and exercising their right to vote. I do not like voters’ apathy because it's out there. People don't vote and why they don't – I think that's left up to us as officials and public officials to make sure that we interest and engage these individuals back into voting.
Eric Fey: You've been listening to High Turnout Wide Margins, a podcast that explores local elections administration. I'm your host, Eric Fey alongside Brianna Lennon. A big thanks to KBIA and the Election Center for making this podcast possible. Our Managing Editor is Rebecca Smith. Managing Producer is Aaron Hay. Our Associate Producer is Katie Quinn, and our Digital Producer is Mark Johnson. This has been High Turnout Wide Margins. Thanks for listening.
