2024 IACRC Elections Conference

Brett Bishop is a forensic document examiner certified by the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners (ABFDE) and the manager of Bishop Document Examination Services LLC. He began his career in 2005 in forensic document examination. He worked for sixteen years with the Washington State Patrol as a forensic scientist, supervising forensic scientist, and laboratory manager. He currently does contract work for the Idaho State Police. He provides signature verification training to agencies all over the country. He has provided the training to workers in Alaska, Idaho, Louisiana, Montana, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

Marissa Morrison is a Pocatello native who now calls Boise home. Marissa currently works as press secretary to U.S. Senator Mike Crapo. She previously served as press secretary for Idaho Governor Brad Little. Prior to her time in government, Marissa worked for Bilbao & Co. as a communications strategist and reporter and anchor for KIVI Six on Your Side in Nampa and KPVI News 6 in Pocatello. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in broadcasting & electronic media studies from Gonzaga University. She enjoys golfing, skiing, and spending time with her dog, Breezy, and dressage horse, Saint.

Chelsea Carattini is the Communications Director at the Idaho Secretary of State's Office. Prior to this role, she served as the Communications Specialist at the Ada County Clerk's Office. Chelsea holds a Master's Degree in Political Science from Utah State University and a Bachelor's Degree from Southern Utah University. Since 2015, Chelsea has been teaching management courses on feedback and creating a thriving office culture. She resides in Boise with her son and Great Dane puppy, George.

Valerie Varadi has been the Elections Director for Twin Falls County since September 2012. Her work in elections started in March of 2011 with Lincoln County as the Elections Clerk shortly after election consolidation started. She obtained her Certified Election Registration Administrator certification through the Election Center in August of 2022. Valerie lives in Dietrich with her husband of 26 years, John, and their 14-year-old daughter, Layla, three ferrets, three cats, three dogs, and six goats. They also have a 23-year-old daughter, Rosalyn, and son-in-law, Hunter. She enjoys road trips with her family, rock hounding, and camping in the mountains.

Patty Weeks obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from Boise State University and Juris Doctor from the University of Idaho College of Law. She is a licensed attorney in both Idaho and Washington and has been admitted to practice in the Nez Perce Tribal Court and Coeur d’Alene Tribal Court and has been certified as a mediator. She has also taught an Ethics course at Lewis Clark State College. Currently she is in her sixth term as the Nez Perce County Clerk and was a recipient of the 2006 Mills-Adler Award. Patty is active not only with the Idaho Association of Counties, National Association of Counties, U.S. Election Assistance Commission Standards Board, and State of Idaho Election Committee but serves on numerous community boards. She is a lifelong resident of Idaho and lives on the family farm in Reubens.

Jennifer Locke was the Chief Deputy Clerk in Kootenai County under former Clerk Jim Brannon for six years. She ran for Kootenai County Clerk in 2022 and took office in January of 2023. In 2020, Jennifer spent most of her time as Chief Deputy Clerk helping in the Elections Department from training poll workers, managing the new campaign finance system for county filings, overseeing the logistics of sending out nearly 44,000 absentees in-house for the May 2020 Primary and trying to improve election processes during COVID—which included researching and having the county switch to e-poll books, print on demand for early voting and having absentees mailed out by K&H Printers for the 2020 General Election. Jennifer has a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Southern Maine. She lives in Hayden with her husband of 20 years, Ken, and their four children.

Dr. Tim Hoyt was commissioned as an Officer in the Medical Service Corps of the United States Army in 2007 through the Health Professions Scholarship Program, and began his professional career as the Chief Psychology Resident at Madigan Army Medical Center. After deploying as the lead of a behavioral health team supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, Dr. Hoyt subsequently served in civilian roles as the chief of an embedded behavioral health clinic, director of an intensive outpatient program for posttraumatic stress disorder, director of the National Center for Telehealth & Technology, and director of the Psychological Health Center of Excellence. He currently serves as the Deputy Director for Force Resiliency in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel & Readiness, where he oversees integrated policies, oversight, and synchronization of activities in the areas of personnel risk reduction, suicide prevention, sexual assault prevention and response, violence prevention, and collaborative efforts with the Department of Veterans Affairs. As a Military Psychologist, he has authored over 100 scientific research articles on combat-related stress, posttraumatic stress disorder, and adapting treatment for deployed military settings.

Gabriel Sterling is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for the Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, and he is also serving Georgians as the Director of the Professional Licensing Division of the office. He gained visibility during the 2020 election cycle as the Statewide Voting System Implementation Manager when he oversaw the largest rollout of voting equipment in U.S. history with Georgia’s new, secure, paper-ballot system – on time and under budget. In that role, he led the response to the COVID pandemic by moving quickly to build a high capacity absentee ballot system, securing protective equipment and sanitizer for the counties that run elections. After the November election, he frequently briefed the media on the details of the largest hand recount in the United States and a second recount. He gained worldwide attention when he gave an impassioned defense of election workers and called on President Trump, and others in positions of responsibility, to stop spreading disinformation surrounding the November General Election. Before coming to the Secretary of State’s office, his involvement with elections was from the other side of the table in that he had a long career as a political consultant with several campaigns on the state and federal level, going back to his teenage years here in Georgia. He also worked as a business and operations consultant to firms as small as $1 million and up to $100 million in sales. He worked on Capitol Hill for Georgia Congressman Charlie Norwood (GA-10) from 1995-96. He served in elective office as a member of the Sandy Springs City Council from 2011-2018. He was an integral part of developing the Sandy Springs City Center, passing “The Next 10” a land use plan to protect and enhance neighborhoods, and played a key role in bringing the Mercedes Benz USA headquarters to Sandy Springs, Georgia. He is still involved in his hometown community recently serving as the Chairman of the Sandy Springs Charter Commission and as a board member for the Sandy Springs Conservancy, an environmental charity focused on preserving greenspace and enhancing recreation opportunities. He is a graduate of the University of Georgia. In his personal time he enjoys yardwork, cooking, and especially engaging in making great BBQ.

Sheryl has been with the Secretary of State for four years and is the Campaign Finance Manager. She is passionate about assisting both the counties and candidates with campaign finance related questions and is excited to share the new Sunshine Campaign Finance Portal with you today.

Courtney Estrada holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Boise State University. During her time at BSU, she was given the opportunity to work as an intern at the Ada County Elections office. During her internship, she discovered her passion in assisting voters in her community. She pursued a full-time position and started her official elections journey as the Early Voting and Polling Place Coordinator. She has since been promoted to the position of Elections Trainer where she enjoys working with the poll workers in Ada County and sharing her knowledge.

Pam Anderson is a proven leader in the public administration, elections policy, and administration space with over twenty years of experience in the field. She served in elected office as the Jefferson County Colorado Clerk and Recorder elected City Clerk for the City of Wheat Ridge. Pam was also the Republican nominee for Colorado Secretary of State in 2022. Pam was the executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association leading the professional association in training, education, government relations, and advocacy. As President of the CCCA and a legislative co-chair she represented and led local election officials for voters in nearly all the reform in Colorado elections of the last two decades.