Early voting for the General Election started two weeks ago and poll worker training for Election Day starts this week.
Everything is running smoothly so far, Brown County Clerk Kathy Smith said last week, and that those involved in election procedures are making sure everything’s “headed in the right direction.”
Only one issue has arisen with the post office, Smith said last week, with some ballots having been returned to the clerk’s office saying addresses were invalid.
Voters have been contacted to ensure their addresses were correct, which Smith said they were initially and that she was not sure why they were returned.
In the spring primary, an issue with the post office box renewal electronic records resulted in the clerk’s office P.O. box being locked on April 13.
She said she did not discover the box was locked until she went to pick up the mail on April 15.
Smith said she went to unlock the P.O. box used for mail-in ballots and it would not work. That is when a post office employee told her they had locked the box because they had not filled out the renewal paperwork in January.
The issue was rectified after Smith paid a $10 fee to the post office.
Early, in-person absentee voting began on Oct. 12.
As of Oct. 20, 553 people had voted early by either casting a ballot in person or mailing it in.
In the primary election this spring, 244 people had voted absentee by the 11th day of voting, less than half of the total amount who have voted early so far in the first six days of early voting for the general election.
In the Salmon Room on Oct. 20, absentee voter board members Julie Cauble and Donna Kelp Lutes have been welcoming voters into the meeting room that’s been converted for election purposes.
Cauble said there have been more than 60 voters in the Salmon Room every day since early voting began.
They said many have cast early votes because they will be out of town or college students who were home for fall break and returning to their campuses before Election Day.
Others have voted early to beat Election Day crowds and lines.
Two voters made it to the Salmon Room on Oct. 20 just before the doors were closed for the day at 4 p.m.
Tonya Prescher and Elaine Bailey said they had time to vote that day so they chose to cast their ballots early. They are registered for a craft class on Nov. 8 and wanted to make sure they didn’t miss the opportunity to vote.
Prescher said she had never voted early before.
The process is more or less the same as casting your vote on Election Day, and voters will arrive at the same location instead of their own precinct polling location with less of a chance of waiting in line.
Voters enter the room, share a valid form of identification and poll workers check the individual’s address in order to determine what precinct they live in. Ballots are then pulled from a file cabinet with the corresponding precinct and given to the voter, who fills it out and places it in the ballot box.
Just like on Election Day, anyone who votes early in-person also get a sticker, that says “I Voted Absentee.”
The last day to vote early and in-person will be Nov. 7 by noon. The hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Early, in-person voting will also happen this Saturday, Oct. 29 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Early voting will also be open on Saturday, Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Chief Deputy Clerk Laura Wert was in the Salmon Room on Oct. 20 and said that it’s difficult to find people who want to work in early voting.
Cauble and Lutes agreed that with all the processes and procedures they must follow, it’s a lot of work.
Lutes is a new poll worker and said it has been an eye-opening experience.
No major issues have been reported in the voting process so far and most voters have been able to cast their ballots with ease. One provisional ballot has been issued and will be reviewed after Election Day, when all provisional ballots are considered by the Brown County Election Board.
Vote absentee
Anyone who will be out of the area for work on election day, has a disability, is 65 or older, can’t get to the polls, or meets other specific requirements can apply for a mail in ballot. For details, visit vote.org/absentee-ballot/indiana or contact the Brown County clerk’s office.
The deadline for the vote by mail application is Thursday, Oct. 27 at 11:59 p.m. online at indianavoters.in.gov or at 4 p.m. in the Salmon Room. If you request an application you will need to mail it back or drop it off in person. Postage and envelopes will not be provided. Return the completed application for mail in ballot to the Brown County Clerk’s PO Box 85 Nashville, Indiana 47448 to be received by Oct. 27.
Completed mail-in absentee ballots must be received, either dropped off in person to the Absentee Voter Board in the Salmon Room at the County Office building before early in-person voting, during early in person voting hours or dropped off on Election Day.
Whether mailed or dropped off in person, all completed ballots must be received in the Salmon Room by 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8 or they will not count in the election. Ballots can be mailed and the ballot must be received by Nov. 8 regardless of the postmark date.
Questions? The Absentee Voter Board can be reached at 812-988-5757 or by emailing [email protected].
A bipartisan team will take a ballot to a person in a few circumstances:
the voter expects to be confined, due to illness or injury, or the voter expects to be caring for a confined person at a private residence, on election day; or the voter has disabilities and believes their polling place is not accessible to them; or
the voter is physically unable to complete the ballot and sign the affidavit on their own.
The absentee voter board can visit people in one of those situations and help them with their ballot.
Voters voting by traveling board are not required to show photo ID.
For more information about absentee voting options, and the deadline to apply, visit in.gov/sos/elections/2402.htm.
The location for in-person absentee voting will take place in the Salmon Room at the County Office Building, 201 Lorcust Lane in Nashville.
