Can you track your vote to see if it’s been counted yet in Idaho? Here’s how to check
Voting by mail can be an easy and accommodating way for Idaho residents to cast a ballot in the November election. But some voters might be concerned about their ballot getting misplaced, or lost in the mail, or missing information they forgot to fill out.
Here’s how tracking your ballot in Idaho works:
Tracking your absentee ballot
Idaho voters can track their absentee ballot status through the Vote Idaho Website and selecting the find your sample ballot option, which would take them to the Voter Information Look-Up page. Once entering their information, voters can see their general voter information such as their precinct number, congressional district and where to vote at the polls on Election Day if they choose that route.
For the absentee voters, this page will also show their ballot status, but according to Chelsea Carattini, communications director for the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office, it is not very specific about the ballot’s location.
“(The website) basically just gives you a status whether you have requested it, if it’s been sent to you by your local county clerk’s office, or it will tell you if your ballot has been received by that county clerk’s office,” Carattini said in an interview. “It’ll give you a status based on that. It does give you peace of mind, knowing that your ballot has been received.”
Once the ballot is received, it is stored until election night when the ballots will be opened and counted.
Carattini encouraged voters to submit their absentee ballot as soon as possible through the mail, or at a drop box in their county. There are six drop boxes in Ada County at the county elections office, Eagle City Hall, Star City Hall, Meridian City Hall, Kuna City Hall and Boise City Hall.
Registering to vote & important dates
While the deadline for Idaho residents to pre-register to vote has passed, in-person registration is still possible at early voting locations throughout most Idaho counties. Early voting will be available until Monday, Nov. 1.
Voters can also register to vote at the polls on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5 by 8 p.m.as long as they have a valid photo ID and proof of residence, according to Carattini. If your driver’s license has your current address, that will work as well.
Eligible Idaho voters can sill request an absentee ballot until Friday, Oct. 25. While these are mail-in ballots Carattini stressed the importance of sending it in by Monday, Oct. 28, because the ballot must be turned into a drop box or county clerk’s office in order to be counted, by Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m.
Issues with your absentee ballot
The county clerks’ offices do thorough checks of each ballot to ensure election remain secure, and notify voters if a mistake has appeared on their ballot or if information missing.
“I think a lot of people aren’t aware of that fact we compare every signature to the signature on voter used to register to vote. So if it doesn’t match, we flag it and we reach out to the voter,” Carattini said. “This has happened before, where we often see it, where couples will actually sign each other’s ballot on accidents - inadvertently.”
There have also been instances where a voter has forgotten to sign their absentee ballot, according to Carattini. The voter has to visit the clerk’s office to correct the issue. In Ada County, the county clerk’s office is located at 400 North Benjamin Lane.
No revotes
Some voters have also wondered what would happen in the scenario where a person casts their ballot, but the candidate they voted for dies unexpectedly or there’s some other issue.
Carattini said voters could not revote for a new candidate; instead, an election decision would be left up to the government officials in that area.
“The ballot reflects the will of the voter, so regardless of what happened in the interim, that’s who would win the election,” Carattini said. “There are laws that would go into effect where the governor or the county commissioners would name a replacement and organize another election, but that would depend on the seat and the term of office.”
The last day to vote will be Tuesday, Nov. 5, by 8 p.m, and don’t forget your sticker!
