Here’s what Whatcom voters can do to make sure their ballot is counted
It’s easier to vote in Washington state than almost anywhere else in the nation, where elections have been held by mail in many counties for 20 years.
All-mail voting was adopted statewide in 2011, and Washington is one of only five U.S. states that vote exclusively by mail.
“We want to make it easier to vote (and) we give people lots of options,” said Whatcom County Auditor Diana Bradrick.
No absentee ballot is required in Washington state, even though the U.S. Postal Service is sending reminders to ask for absentee ballots to all registered U.S. voters, Bradrick said.
All registered Washington voters will get a ballot automatically in the mail starting Oct. 14, and all those ballots should be received by Oct. 21.
Some 72 percent of eligible Washington voters cast ballots statewide in the 2018 midterm election but that was only 53% of the voting-age population, according to data from the state Secretary of State’s Office.
Nearly 62% of Whatcom County’s 150,515 registered voters cast ballots in the August primary, according to the Auditor’s Office website.
Registration set a record, and participation was high for a primary, according to voter data.
Election officials in Washington state aren’t expecting many surprises this election year despite the new coronavirus pandemic, because voting has been conducted by mail for so long.
But Bradrick urged voters to check their registration online or with the Auditor’s Office, while there’s time to make address corrections or other changes without going to the office.
“A lot of the big push right now with COVID is to take care of things early so that they don’t have to come in and stand in line with other people,” Bradrick told The Bellingham Herald.
“If they don’t get it addressed by Oct. 27, they have to come in,” she said.
Disqualified votes
Even though Whatcom County voters don’t use a voting machine, there’s a symbolic poll-closing time of 8 p.m. on Election Day.
That’s when the Auditor’s Office closes to in-person voting, when ballot drop-off boxes are locked, and when mailed ballots that arrive in the office must be postmarked.
That’s postmarked — not just placed in the mailbox.
“If I could just get people not to put it in the mail late,” Bradrick said.
This year, U.S. Postal Service officials recommend mailing your ballot no less than one week before Election Day to ensure a valid postmark.
Otherwise, use one of the 18 ballot drop-off boxes located around the county.
For the August primary, 655 ballots arrived with a postmark too late to be counted, 156 ballots didn’t have a signature on the envelope, 340 ballot signatures didn’t match those on file, and 15 ballots were rejected for other reasons.
Bradrick said she’s heard from voters whose ballots were disqualified even though they mailed them on Election Day.
For those voters who are cutting it close, it’s important to check the last pickup time on the mailbox they use.
“(Voters) have the option, if voting late, of going to the post office and having them hand-cancel,” she said. “But we are encouraging people to vote early enough to ensure that their ballot is on time.”
Bradrick recommends delivering your ballot by Monday, Nov. 2, to avoid drop-box lines election evening.
How to register
▪ Register to vote and check or change your registration information at VoteWA.gov.
▪ Register to vote when you get a driver’s license.
▪ Register or change your address online or by mail through Oct. 26, and in person at the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office from Oct. 27 until poll-closing time of 8 p.m. Nov. 3.
Mark your ballot
Every registered voter will get a ballot in the mail starting Oct. 14.
Call the Auditor’s Office at 360-778-5100 or contact auditor@co.whatcom.wa.us if you haven’t received one by Oct. 21.
▪ Read the instructions and mark your ballot using ink or dark pencil.
▪ Fill in the oval for the candidate or measure of your choice, and avoid stray marks.
▪ Sign your ballot envelope.
Send it in
▪ Postage is free, or use one of the 18 ballot drop boxes around Whatcom County.
▪ Ballots also can be dropped off at the Auditor’s Office, 311 Grand Ave. Face coverings and social distancing are required.
▪ U.S. Postal Service officials recommend mailing your ballot no less than one week before Election Day (Oct. 27) to ensure a valid postmark.
▪ Use a ballot drop box any time, and especially if it’s only a few days until election day.
▪ Check to see if your ballot was accepted at VoteWA.gov.
▪ Ballots must be postmarked, and not simply mailed, by 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3.
▪ Check the last pickup time at the mailbox you use.
▪ Your ballot will be counted if it arrives in the mail after election day, as long as it was postmarked before 8 p.m. Nov. 3.
Drop box locations
▪ Acme Elementary, 5200 Turkington Road.
▪ Blaine Library, 610 3rd St.
▪ Birch Bay (North Whatcom Fire & Rescue), 4581 Birch Bay-Lynden Road.
▪ Custer Elementary, 7660 Custer School Road.
▪ Courthouse South Parking Lot, 201 Grand Ave.
▪ Deming Library, 5044 Mt. Baker Highway.
▪ Everson WECU, 106 E. Main St.
▪ Ferndale City Hall, 2095 Main St.
▪ Lummi Nation Administration Building, 2665 Kwina Road.
▪ Lynden Library, 216 4th St.
▪ Meridian (Laurel Grange), 6172 Guide Meridian.
▪ Kendall (North Fork Community Library), 7506 Kendall Road.
▪ Point Roberts Marketplace (8 a.m.-10 p.m.), 480 Tyee Dr.
▪ Sehome Haggens, 210 36th St., Haggen Sehome Village, NE Corner.
▪ Sudden Valley, Sudden Valley Security Turnaround, Gate One.
▪ Sumas, 534 Railroad Ave.
▪ Whatcom Community College, 231 W. Kellogg Road.
▪ WWU, on campus outside Wade King Student Recreation Center, 1880 Bill McDonald Parkway.
This story was originally published September 14, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
