Election ballots headed to county voters

Thank goodness they don’t have to lick the stamps! County elections staff will mail nearly 250,000 general election ballots to registered voters today.

Voters will be asked to make decisions on state initiatives, county council races, and local government offices including mayors, city councilors and school board members. Just in time for Halloween, there are even a couple of cemetery district seats on the ballot.

The highest-profile races are in county government, where voters will choose a county chair and a District 2 council representative. Both positions were created by a charter that voters approved last November, and the winners will join three sitting county councilors to form a five-member board.

Registered voters who don’t receive a ballot by Oct. 23 should contact the elections office at 360-397-2345, elections@clark.wa.gov, or by stopping by the office, 1408 Franklin St. in Vancouver, during normal business hours. Stopping by the office is also the way to register to vote in the election; the deadline for by-mail voter registration has already passed. The final day for in-person voter registration is Oct. 26.

In order to be valid, the ballots must be filled out and returned by 8 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3. Ballots can be mailed in the provided envelope but must be postmarked on or before Nov. 3. Ballots also can be returned to any of four permanent drop boxes open during election season, or to more than a dozen Election Day drop sites. For more information, visit www.clarkvotes.org.

On Election Night, vote totals will be posted about 8:30 p.m. on the county’s website and also at www.columbian.com. More counts will follow in the coming days, with the election due to be certified on Nov. 24.

Don’t know who to vote for? The county has produced a voter’s pamphlet; if you didn’t get one at home, it is online at clarkvotes.org.

The Columbian also has extensive coverage of the contested races and ballot measures, which is available at www.columbian.com/election. That page continues to be updated with the latest election news.