As the voting population of the U.S. prepares for the upcoming election, The Argonaut has prepared a guide on voting in Latah County.
The quickest and easiest way to request a mailed ballot is to submit a request online at idahovotes.gov, Latah County Clerk, Auditor and Recorder Henrianne Westberg said. Voters can also complete the absentee ballot request form and return it by placing it in the elections drop box at the Latah County Courthouse parking lot or by mailing it to Latah County Elections, PO Box 8068, Moscow ID 83843.
Westberg asks voters to request a mail ballot by 5 p.m. Oct. 23. The county will start mailing requested ballots Sept. 18.
Important dates
The first big deadline for voters is Oct. 9, when voter registration will close.
While the election isn’t until Nov. 3, those who live in Moscow and intend to vote accordingly need to register to vote at the address they want their ballot sent to before the Oct. 9 deadline. Otherwise, they’ll have to register during the early voting period or in person on Election Day, which Westberg said she doesn’t advise.
“I really don’t want to see people at the polls, because of COVID-19,” Westberg said. “If you don’t register by Oct. 9, then you have to stand in this long line on Nov. 3 to register and then go stand in another line to get your ballot and vote.”
Now, let’s say someone forgets the Oct. 9 deadline. Instead of voting in-person on Election Day, voters can participate in early voting by registering to vote and filling out their ballots at the Latah County Courthouse. To do so, voters must bring proof of their address and that that they have lived in Latah County for 30 days prior to the election, Westberg said.
Early voting is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays Oct. 13-30 and two Saturdays, Oct. 17 and 24.
After Oct. 30, those who missed the Oct. 9 deadline must vote in person on Election Day. The election will take place Tuesday, Nov. 3 and polling locations will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Polling locations
Latah County has 18 precincts, the boundaries of which determine where citizens can vote on Election Day. Of those 18 precincts, four are in and around the University of Idaho.
As the UI polling location is temporarily moved from the Bruce M. Pitman Center, registered Moscow voters who live within precincts 1, 8, 16 and 18 can vote at the Student Recreation Center (SRC) this November.
“The Vandal Ballroom is where they initially said we could have a polling place,” Westberg said. “When COVID-19 hit, they needed that space for students to social distance in the classroom.”
Voters in precincts 2, 3, 4 and 17 can vote at the Hamilton-Lowe Aquatic Center. Moscow’s 10 remaining precincts can vote at the Latah County Fairgrounds.
Face masks and social distancing are required for in-person voting, according to Westberg, who is strongly encouraging absentee voting for this election.
“We’ll have three polling locations places on Nov. 3, but please, request an absentee ballot,” Westberg said. “I can’t stress that enough.”
Westberg said she typically has large amount of elderly poll workers who now can’t work, so she’s recruited younger poll workers. The new workers will go through training and work with an experienced poll worker to learn the ropes.
“At first I didn’t know if we’d have enough, but we have enough now,” Westberg said. “I think people generously rallied and said, ‘I can do this.’”
Absentee ballots
While some are concerned about the delays of mail ballots due to an expected increase in absentee ballots, Westberg said she doesn’t expect any issues.
She spoke with U.S Postal Service officials in Latah County and Seattle, who said they feel comfortable about election materials being mailed and don’t anticipate problems, according to Westberg. Latah County pays first-class return postage and marks election mail so post offices know its importance. In addition, the idahovotes.gov website allows voters to track the status of their absentee ballot request.
After each election, Westberg said she reviews all ballots which arrived too late to be counted, and has only found two ballots mailed in time for the election which failed to reach her office by Election Day.
“It’s very important to me that everyone who casts a ballot, has their ballot counted,” Westberg said. “That’s one of my goals. I also think having a good relationship with our postmasters in the rural areas and in Moscow is helpful.”
In Latah County, there are three precincts who always get their ballots by mail, according to Westberg. If a precinct has 125 people or less, they’re called a mail ballot precinct.
“We’ve been mailing them their ballots for years, and they’ve been mailing them back and we haven’t had any problems,” Westberg said. “Not one single problem, and these are our most rural voters.”
Angela Palermo can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @apalermooo.