What you need to know about voting in the Nov. 3 election

Ballots for the Nov. 3 General Election were mailed to all active, registered Eagle County voters on Oct 9. Voters should visit their mailboxes no later than Oct. 17 to ensure that they have received their ballot. If a ballot has not arrived, voters should check their registration at http://www.GoVoteColorado.gov to verify that their information is correct, including their mailing address, or contact the Eagle County Clerk’s election office.

When should I vote?

The last day an individual can submit a registration application and still receive a ballot in the mail is Oct 26. After Oct. 26, voters must come into any Eagle County Voter Service and Polling Center to pick up a ballot or to vote in-person.  Voters can register to vote up to and including Election Day.

Vote centers will open in Avon, Eagle and El Jebel starting Oct. 19, and in Vail starting Oct. 30. Vote centers offer voters all Election Day services 15 days prior to the election, so anything a voter can do on Election Day, Nov. 3, they can do starting Oct. 19.  There’s no need to wait until Election Day to register to vote, pick up a ballot or vote in the vote center. Accessible voting services are also available. 

What should I expect this year?

The only aspect that may differ for voters on Election Day from the 15 days prior is likely wait times. Typically, vote center wait times and lines are very short to non-existent in the two weeks prior to Election Day, and the possibility of a wait time increases as Election Day approaches. Our goals are to provide very quick service for voters, and to reduce density in our vote centers for the health and safety of voters and election judges. We also want to reduce any spread of COVID-19 in our community.

How do I submit my ballot?

Once voters are confident in their choices, they must sign the back of their ballot return envelope and return their voted ballots via mail (postage is $0.70) or to any 24-hour drop box located in Avon, Edwards, Eagle, El Jebel and Basalt. In addition, we have just added a sixth Eagle County 24-hour drop box outside the Town of Gypsum Municipal building (50 Lundgren Blvd.)   All six ballot boxes are open starting Oct. 9, the same day ballots are mailed, and are under 24-hour video surveillance. 

Ballot boxes are also available inside any vote center. If returning a ballot by mail, voters should mail their ballots no later than Oct. 26 as postmarks do not count in Colorado. If a voter is traveling or working in a different county, they can also return their ballot in any of the 300+ Colorado county clerk-controlled 24-hour ballot boxes by 7 p.m. on Election Day. Counties work together to ensure that ballots are delivered to each other as long as ballots are received by the Nov. 3 deadline.

What happens to my ballot?

If voters would like to track their ballot, they can sign up for alerts through BallotTrax at http://www.colorado.ballottrax.net. Voters can choose to receive text messages or emails alerting them when their ballot has been mailed, received, and accepted. Voters can also track their ballots through their voter registration at http://www.GoVoteColorado.gov by clicking on “Ballot Information” in their voter record.

How can I find out about local results?

On the evening of Nov. 3, shortly after 7 p.m., voters will see unofficial election results on the Eagle County website and on the Eagle County Clerk’s Twitter feed (@ECClerk). These first results are from ballots that were earlier turned in and processed. By law, Colorado clerks may begin processing ballots starting Oct. 19 but results may not be tabulated and released until 7 p.m. on Election Night. We will post updates to these Election Night results until midnight.  If more ballots need to be processed, we will continue to do so on Nov. 4 after our hard working election judges and team get some much deserved rest. 

Ballots will continue to be scanned eight days after the election as we receive cures from voters with signature discrepancies and ballots from military and overseas voters. Results are officially certified by a bi-partisan team of judges only after completion of the post-election risk limiting audit; the deadline for official certification of results is Nov. 25.