August 9, 2022 |
Wyoming’s Primary Election is one week from today, and it’s down to the wire for candidates as well as absentee voters. In Carbon County, over 1,000 absentee ballots have been sent out to those who requested them. About 40 percent have not been returned yet.
County Clerk Gwynn Bartlett said absentee ballots must be returned to her office by 7 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.
Absentee ballots can be returned by U.S. Mail. Or you can drop off your ballot in person at the county clerk’s offices inside The Carbon Building—Courthouse Annex at 215 West Buffalo Street.
Bartlett, who keeps track of election numbers as part of her job, said the number of absentee ballots sent this year is about 20 percent more than during the mid-term primary of 2018, but about half of the number mailed to voters in the summer of 2020.
Most of the absentee ballots are requested by voters who are not planning to be absent during the election. Bartlett said residents just like to cast their ballot early.
Some see absentee voting like a take-home or open-book test. If you’re not familiar with candidate or a ballot issue, you can take the time to do some research so you can cast an informed vote with confidence.
“On time” this year means by 7 p.m. on Election Day. Again, the ballots must be returned to the County Clerk’s office in Rawlins by then. According to the results of 2018, also a mid-term year, 3,50 ballots were cast in Carbon County’s Primary Election. Bartlett said there’s no way of knowing if turnout will be on a par or different this year.
