Give credit to Lynn Bartels at the Secretary of State’s Office for introducing us to Hayle Johnson, the longtime clerk and recorder in north-central Colorado’s rural Jackson County. After reading a blog post by Bartels about some of the unusual challenges Johnson faces in running a clerk’s office in the middle of a place like North Park, we had to know more.

Denver, El Paso County or Jeffco, it ain’t. Among Johnson’s many duties? She has to arrange for the road department to bring in heaters to thaw the ground for a winter burial in the county-run cemetery, which she oversees. And she has to make sure every vote counts in a vast county with a relative handful of voters – and none of the modern balloting technology found in the state’s population centers. No wonder she was a shoo-in for this week’s Q&A. Read on to find out, among other things, why Johnson feels tallying ballots by hand actually instills greater confidence in elections.

Colorado Politics: Jackson County is Colorado’s fourth-smallest in population; it had under 1,400 residents as of the 2010 Census. Walden, the county seat, is its only municipality. Yet, you have to meet a lot of the same needs as does any county clerk even in the state’s metro areas. What are some of the things you’d like your urban counterparts to know about running a clerk’s office in such a remote and sparsely populated part of the state?

Hayle Johnson: It’s kind of like the M&Ms commercial – we do exist!

I would also tell them how appreciative I am of  their assistance when I call upon their expertise!

CP: The Secretary of State’s Office’s Lynn Bartels wrote in her blog a while back that you actually hand-count your ballots for lack of expensive scanning equipment – yet you’re typically among the first clerks to report returns on election night. How do you do it? How many registered voters are there in Jackson County? What’s it like to count ballots by hand, and does that raise security concerns or any other issues?

Johnson: Of the 1,228 registered voters in Jackson County, 983 of those are active. Mail ballot elections allow voters to have their ballots in hand 45 days prior to election day; while there are still a few voters who hold tight to tradition and insist on dropping their ballot into the ballot box in person on election day, most of our ballots are received within the first few days after being mailed. The multiple boards of bi-partisan counting judges begin tallying votes a few days prior to election day, and we get caught up on much of the backlog of ballots prior to election day.

I think hand-counting helps to make Jackson County voters feel vested in the election, knowing the set of eyes that will be tabulating their selections. Many of these election judges were the same trustworthy individuals who may have taught them in school, attended their church, taught them fire prevention, or maybe even changed their diaper at one time or another!

Hayle Johnson

CP: You also told Bartels you “do the marrying and the burying” in the county – issuing licenses for the former and digging graves for the latter – because the county cemetery falls under your authority. Now, that’s something the Denver or El Paso County clerks probably don’t have to worry about! What does running the cemetery entail?

Johnson: Great record keeping would be the obvious answer, but for me it goes so much deeper than that.

My family has been in the park four generations. I know each and every one of my constituents. Pulling out the records and sitting down to discuss the burial arrangements with someone you know is difficult, but I am happy to be able to offer my condolences and to ensure the family that their loved ones will be treated with dignity and respect.

It is a long standing tradition for Jackson County government offices and Main Street businesses to close in observance of a funeral.

CP: How long have you been in office? Considering you also served as town clerk for Walden before your time with the county, you must have a Wikipedia-worthy knowledge base of how to run elections and conduct the other affairs of the clerk’s office. How much of a challenge is it for rural counties to replace that kind of skill set when someone of your seasoning at some point moves on?

Johnson: I worked as deputy clerk for the Town of Walden from 1998-2005; I was hired as deputy clerk for the County of Jackson in the fall of 2005 and was elected (as clerk) in 2006. Elections have changed significantly since 1998! Election night used to be a social gathering in our rural polling places – complete with a potluck dinner. It has since evolved to combined polling places, and now with mail ballot elections we have Centralized Voter Service and Polling Centers. Although the name sounds a whole lot more official, voters are still greeted in person by someone they know and trust to assist them with all of their election needs.  I don’t know that anyone can acquire the skill set of a county clerk unless they are actually in office as a county clerk. More importantly than skill set, I think it boils down to embracing your role as a public servant.

Having over 1,200 bosses is a chore; date nights are often interrupted by politics; quick trips to the grocery store entail being bombarded with car registration questions; endless questions about marijuana regulations and requests to recite 10 years of commission minutes are all offset by the feeling you get by going above and beyond for the people you were chosen to serve. This position isn’t for everyone, but for those of us who are gluttons for punishment, we love every minute of it!

I know each and every one of my constituents. Pulling out the records and sitting down to discuss the burial arrangements with someone you know is difficult, but I am happy to be able to offer my condolences and to ensure the family that their loved ones will be treated with dignity and respect. … It is a long standing tradition for Jackson County government offices and Main Street businesses to close in observance of a funeral.

CP: In addition to running elections and the graveyard and issuing marriage licenses, the Jackson County Clerk’s Office also titles and registers vehicles; records legal documents like deeds; oversees liquor licensing – and even takes minutes at commission meetings. Sounds like a heck of a duty roster. What’s the size of your staff – and how do you get everything done?

Johnson: My staff consists of myself, one full- and one part-time deputy. We are also one of the few (if not only) counties in the state that are responsible for the county’s monthly payroll, w-2s, 1099s, and accounts payable!

Everything gets done because we make time to do things right the first time!

When I was first in training way back in 2005, my mentor, Carla Ray, told me not to ever hurry through a transaction even if the customer was pressuring me. She said, “That customer doesn’t know it, but they would rather wait for you to do it correctly instead of having to come back for you to fix something you messed up because you were in a hurry!” Carla retired in 2007 after 30-plus years, her words resonated with me, and her wisdom has become our office motto.

CP: You grew up in Walden. What’s the best thing about living in your hometown? What’s the biggest challenge to living where it gets so cold?

Johnson: I never really “grew up” in Walden – in most of my constituents’ eyes I am still little ol’ freckle-faced Hayle!

If you have to ask what the best thing about Walden is, then you haven’t spent enough time here: no stoplights; no traffic (except for an occasional cattle drive or moose crossing); no line at the DMV; hunting, fishing, hiking, 4-wheeling right in your back yard; waving at every vehicle you see because you know the person behind the wheel; the way we all come together to help a neighbor in need. This is what makes Walden special.

The cold is relative. A week or two of 40-below weather is just our special way of keeping our paradise to ourselves.

CP: When you visit someplace outside Jackson County, where do you like to go – even if it can’t hold a candle to the “Moose-Viewing Capital of Colorado”?

Johnson: Both my daughters have been involved in every athletic activity our school offers, so for the past 10 years I have been spending much of my free time spectating from the bleachers in all areas of the state including southwest to Olathe, as far west as Rangley, as high in elevation as Fairplay and back down to the flatlands of Fleming, and even a little place called Hanover outside of Colorado Springs!

I’m going to enjoy following my youngest daughter around our beautiful state for one more year, but after she graduates, I plan on spending my free time somewhere warm (although I don’t like bugs, or spiders, or snakes)! Maybe I will buy myself a tanning package at the local TesSalon!