The time has come for voters planning to utilize absentee ballots to start voting. According to the Alaska Division of Elections, a little over 100,000 mail-in absentee ballots were mailed to Alaskans for the November 3 general election. Those ballots should have arrived in mailboxes already.
Many voters are planning to cast their absentee ballots in-person, and that process began on Monday. Some locations in the Peninsula are closed on Monday, but will be open on Tuesday.
The locations are as follows:
- Kenai voters vote at the Kenai City Clerk’s Office at 210 Fidalgo Avenue from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
- Soldotna voters vote at Peninsula Center Mall on 44332 Sterling Highway from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
- Closed on Monday but opening on Tuesday:
- Homer voters vote at the Homer City Clerk’s office at 491 East Pioneer Avenue from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
- Seward voters vote at the Seward City Clerk’s office from 410 Adams Street from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
- Seldovia voters vote at the Seldovia City Clerk’s office at 246 Dock Street from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
For early voters on the Kenai Peninsula, in-person absentee ballots will be allowed until November 2, as the general election begins on November 3. E-mailed or faxed ballots are allowed until 5:00 p.m. on November 2, as well.
Worth a reminder is that mail-in absentee ballots do not require witness signatures, according an Alaska Supreme Court ruling. However, in order for a vote to count, voters must still sign the back of the absentee ballot envelope and provide a voter identifier, such as date of birth, driver’s license number, or others.
Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by November 3, and the Division of Elections says that they will be counted by November 10, with an aim to certify the election by November 25.