Absentee voting begins in municipal elections
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IDAHO FALLS – Voting for the Nov. 4 municipal elections is underway for voters submitting absentee ballots.
Absentee voting, sometimes called vote-by-mail voting, is open now. The last day to request an absentee ballot is Oct. 24 and all absentee ballots must be returned by 8 p.m. on election day.
RELATED: EastIdahoNews.com will be publishing the responses to candidate questionnaires every day through the municipal election on Nov. 4. Read them all here.
Absentee voting makes sense for voters unable to vote on election day or for anyone who wants to avoid going to their individual polling place, according to Helena Welling, Bonneville County election supervisor. Idaho voters do not need to provide a reason to vote by absentee ballot.
Early voting
Another method of casting a ballot, early voting, begins Oct. 20 in Bonneville County and allows residents to cast their ballots just as they would on election day, but it’s done at each county’s elections office. Early voting ends on the Friday before election day, Oct. 31.
In-person absentee voting
Finally, all counties offer either early voting or in-person absentee voting.
While absentee voting (vote-by-mail) is underway now in all Idaho counties, the following local counties offer early voting:
- Bannock: Early voting began Tuesday, Oct. 14. 208-236-7333
- Bonneville: Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 20. 208-529-1363
- Bingham: Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 20. 208-782-3164
- Franklin: In-person absentee, no early voting. 208-852-1090
- Jefferson: Early voting begins Oct. 20. 208-745-7756