Lori Mitchell, Chaffee County Clerk, and Recorder, has been recognized as a Certified Elections/Registration Administrator (CERA) through the Election Center, National Association of Election Officials. Clerk Mitchell’s CERA designation is the country’s highest professional achievement for election officials.
Chaffee County Clerk and Recorder Lori Mitchell during preparations for an election primary. Dan Smith photo
The CERA certification is achieved through a multi-year program affiliated with Auburn University’s Master in Public Administration with course work conducted by the Election Center’s Professional Education Program. The intent of the program is to professionalize the management of voter registration and elections administration to promote and preserve public trust in the democratic process.
“The CERA title is the highest designation available to elections and voter registration officials,” shared Tim Mattice, Director of the Election Center. “Clerk Mitchell and her graduating class of 69 election professionals have truly demonstrated their commitment to a career-long process of improving the electoral process in Colorado. This is an outstanding accomplishment and Chaffee County is indeed fortunate to have Clerk Mitchell as one of the top designated election professionals in the country.”
The Election Center is a non-profit association of voter registrars, elections administrators and providers of election services throughout America and the U.S. Territories. Its membership is composed of township, city, county and state elections officials and other election-related organizations. The Center’s primary purpose is to promote and support continuous improvement in the administration of elections and voter registration through research, professional education, conferences, networking and consulting.
Clerk Mitchell has worked in the Chaffee County Clerk and Recorder’s office since 2011 and was first elected as County Clerk in 2014. In 2018 Clerk Mitchell was elected to serve as President of the Colorado County Clerks Association.
In 2019 she served as the elections legislative co-chair for the Clerks Association where she worked on automatic voter registration, accessible ballots under the American with Disabilities Act, and increasing access to voter registration and voting for all Coloradoans, especially students, young people and working families. Clerk Mitchell is a sixth-generation Chaffee County resident and holds a BA in Journalism from Colorado State University.
Congratulations & thank you to Lori Mitchell! I’ve read nothing but good things about you & feel lucky to live in a county with professionals like you at the front!