Add a Batch to a Petition

Dividing incoming petitions into batches prior to signature verification helps the elections office organize the verification process. Individual users can be assigned to work on a specific batch, allowing multiple users to work on the same petition simultaneously.

It isn't mandatory to divide a petition into batches. Batches are an optional feature that can help with petition management. You should be aware that the system assigns batch number 1 to a petition when it's created, so even if you don't create batches, the petition record will still bear the designation "batch 1." Subsequent batches, if added, are automatically numbered 2, 3, etc.

Note Voter Focus permits the assignment of multiple users to a batch, but we recommend you avoid this because it can lead to confusion about which batch is being worked by whom.

To add a new batch to a petition:

On the PETITIONS tab, verify that the petition in focus is the petition you want to create a batch for. If not, change the focus to the correct petition. It doesn't matter which petition batch is in focus.
Click Petition Maintenance > Add New Batch to this Petition and confirm that you want to add the batch.
On the Petition Maintenance dialog, notice that Batch-Number now displays the new batch number.

In Number-Signatures Claimed, you can record the number of petitions the candidate or petition collector claims is in the batch, the number of petitions you plan to verify in this batch, or you can leave this field blank. There is no maximum number of petitions allowed in a batch. Some counties use the same number for each batch (for example, 200); others count the petitions that have come in and create a batch with that number. You should be aware, though, that during the signature-verification process, the software will allow users to verify more petitions than the number entered here, so be aware that entering a number in this field does not mean users will see a message when the batch is "full." (The system does tell users when the number of required signatures has been met.)

Click Save.

You can now assign this batch to a user.

If you want to see how many batches a petition contains, on the Petition Maintenance dialog, click Find. Scroll to the petition name and click the plus sign () next to it to list the petition's batches.