Officials recommend Oct. 27 as mail-in ballot deadline

Dismounting a 1998 Harley Davidson Road King, Roberta Flores and Mike Stowe deposit their General Election ballots in the dropbox at the Prescott Valley Civic Center, 7501 Civic Circle, on Saturday Oct. 24, 2020. For those that prefer to mail in their ballots, USPS and election officials recommend that ballots be placed in the mail no later than Tuesday, Oct. 27 — seven days before Election Day — to ensure they arrive in time. (Richard Haddad/Courier)

Dismounting a 1998 Harley Davidson Road King, Roberta Flores and Mike Stowe deposit their General Election ballots in the dropbox at the Prescott Valley Civic Center, 7501 Civic Circle, on Saturday Oct. 24, 2020. For those that prefer to mail in their ballots, USPS and election officials recommend that ballots be placed in the mail no later than Tuesday, Oct. 27 — seven days before Election Day — to ensure they arrive in time. (Richard Haddad/Courier)

If you plan to mail in your ballot rather than drop it off at a dropbox or vote in person, the United States Postal Service and elections officials have recommended you place it in the mail seven days before Election Day. That makes Tuesday, Oct. 27, their suggested deadline to ensure your ballot arrives in time.

Nationally and in Arizona, as Nov. 3 quickly approaches, many Arizonans still have concerns about getting their mail-in ballots returned on time – and counted.

Voting by mail has become polarized, and some experts have warned that results may be delayed for weeks in presidential and local elections.

“We have been assured by postal officials that this is the deadline that they can say that they can meet and that they don’t anticipate other delays in election mail this year,” Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs said.

But the absolute deadline is Nov. 3. Ballots that can’t be mailed in time to be counted can be dropped off at any polling place before or on Election Day.

FEWER POLL LOCATIONS

This year, fewer polls will be open, especially on Election Day. A review by a collection of civil rights groups revealed that Arizona has closed 320 polling places since 2013.

With this in mind, Hobbs’ office reassured residents that voting by mail is secure and she’s confident in the systems that are in place.

“Every ballot is connected to a voter,” she said. “There’s not random ballots coming in, and there’s not the ability for someone to vote more than one time.”

Mail-in ballots are tracked by each of Arizona’s 15 counties, and voters are notified when their ballots have been processed and are ready to be counted.

The status of mail-in ballots also can be tracked through the Arizona Voter Information Portal.

“We are focused on getting it right, and making sure that every voter who has cast a ballot that is eligible to be counted is able to be counted,” Hobbs said.

WHERE TO VOTE IN PERSON

For those who do not want to mail in their ballot or use a designated dropbox, voters can still vote the traditional way, by going to a polling location.

Election day is Nov. 3, with polls opening at 6 a.m. and closing at 7 p.m. To find the nearest polling location, visit the Arizona Voter Information Portal at my.arizona.vote.

Yavapai County voters can find more elections information and resource links online at www.yavapai.us/electionsvr.

Ray Alonzo of Cronkite News contributed to this story.


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