Absentee in-person voting has begun for the U.S. House special primary election. The election is to fill the remaining five months of Rep. Don Young’s term after he died in March.
The election is the state’s first by-mail election. Ballots have been mailed out to registered voters. But if you would rather vote in-person, you can do that at one of 170 in-person voting sites around the state.
Gail Fenumiai, the director of Alaska Division of Elections, has a couple reminders if you choose to vote in person.
“Make sure that you know the hours of operation, and be prepared to show identification when you appear to vote in front of the election official," she said.
Alaskans can check the hours of their local voting locations online at elections.alaska.gov.
In Fairbanks, the Regional Office on 7th Avenue is the in-person spot and is open weekdays 8:00 to 5:00, Saturdays June 4 from 10:00am - 4:00pm Sunday June 5 from noon to 4:00pm, and on Election Day, Saturday, June 11 traditional polling hours of 7:00am - 8:00pm.
In-person voting will also be open in Bettles, Circle, Eagle, Healy, Nenana, Tok and Delta but irregular days and hours.
If you vote in-person, a ballot will be provided. Fenumiai says it may seem obvious, but if you cast a ballot at an in-person voting site, you will not be allowed to also mail in a ballot. That would result in neither ballot being counted.
"They can destroy their ballot at home by tearing it and disposing of it. If they have a shredder, they can go ahead and shred it," she said.
If you vote by mail, you must have your ballot postmarked by Election Day -- Saturday, June 11, including the voter’s signature, an identifier and a witness signature – but voting officials encourage mailing ballots early, however, because all Fairbanks and rural post offices send mail to Anchorage to be postmarked. The state has received more than 83,000 ballots so far, according to the Division of Elections.
And there’s a third way to vote. Fenumiai says voters can also drop off their mail-in ballots at the in-person voting locations.
"They have ballot boxes there and they’d be able to leave their ballots with the election official. As well as any of our five regional offices around the state, people can hand deliver their ballots there as well," she said.
Forty-eight candidates appear on the ballot. Pick just one in this special primary election.