By Anne Higuera
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Election Day is still one week away, and already 1 out of 5 of all the ballots sent out by King County Elections have been returned by voters. That leaves 1.15 million or so to go.
“We strongly encourage voters not to wait until the last minute on Election Day,” says KCE Communications Manager Halei Watkins. “Make a plan to vote by the end of this week, or over the weekend.” She says in addition to 100 ballot boxes around the county, there are Vote Centers with scheduled open hours during the coming week.
Watkins says ballot boxes are emptied regularly to avoid having them fill up, as happened in 2020 at a West Seattle box. “On Monday and Election Day, high traffic boxes like the Alaska Junction box are emptied several times on those days when we see the highest returns. That said, if a voter believes that a box is getting full, they can give us a call at 206-296-8683 and we’ll send a team out to empty it as soon as possible.”
All of the boxes will be staffed on Election Day, up until the 8pm deadline to return ballots. There are specific rules to know about if you’re arriving close to that deadline. “If there’s a line, voters must be in line before 8 p.m. to have their ballot be considered on-time. It’s important to note that in line means physically in the line, and not walking to the line or parking and making your way to the line or within sight of the line. Elections staff determine and mark the end of the line.”
For those who are used to mailing in ballots, the United States Postal Service‘s official recommendation this year is that the ballot be mailed by today: “…at least one week before the deadline by which your completed ballot must be received by your local election office.”
For those who do not yet have their ballot, Watkins says there’s an option to print your own (fitting to page, since it’s an 18” ballot) and return it to a ballot box or Vote Center. “While you can return by mail, we recommend getting to a drop box at this point in the election.” She says the Vote Centers serve a wide variety of purposes beyond accepting ballots. “Voters can come to get registered, update their registration, get a replacement ballot, or use an accessible voting unit (audio ballot, large print, high contrast, etc)”
We noticed today that the Alaska Junction box (on the south side of Alaska between California and 44th Ave SW) has two dedicated parking spots for voters in the parking lot just behind it. Other West Seattle locations include Morgan Junction, South Seattle College and High Point, with all locations mapped here.
