The office of Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnan has released a list of tips for voters so residents can be ready to cast their ballots on the Nov. 8 elections. Read on for the list and accompanying words of wisdom Secretary Evnan himself shared with KLIN News.
Check your voter registration and polling place
“You can call the election commission office. The Lancaster County election commissioner has that information for you. The election commissioner for Lancaster County can tell you where your polling place is located. You can go onto the Secretary of State’s website where you can check your registration and you can check your polling place.”
Account for any change in address
“If you’ve changed your address, you should notify the election commissioner, because it changes potentially the precinct where you’re located, and it changes the ballot that you would be provided when you vote. If you don’t get your registration changed in time, you can go to your new polling place, get it changed; probably, you’ll be voting with a provisional ballot, but when the change of address is processed, then your ballot will be counted.”
Be prepared
“Inform yourself about the candidates. Inform yourself about the issues. We have two ballot initiatives state-wide that will be before the voters. One has to do with voter id, one has to do with raising the minimum wage. I would encourage voters to take a look at those issues, study those issues, so that they’re informed about them when they go to the polls to cast their ballot. Same goes for candidates.”
Don’t campaign within 200 feet of a polling place
“There’s no campaigning within 200 feet of a polling place. The rules are different for signs. The rules for signs are a little more complicated, but there’s no campaigning within 200 feet of a polling place.”
Behave yourself
“Nebraskans do that by and large. We get occasional reports of people who are wearing inappropriate campaign clothing and buttons. But for the most part, people in our state are respectful of the sanctity of the polling place.”
Ask for assistance
“We have great poll workers in our state. We have great poll workers in our counties. Many of them are experienced, some of them are new. You would go talk to a poll worker who can go help you with that. Every polling place is equipped with voting equipment to accommodate disabled voters. We’re quite proud of the equipment that we have and the accommodations that we provide for disabled voters who wish to cast their ballot at the polls. Nebraskans love going to the polls, and that’s true for disabled voters as well.”
Trust the provisional ballot
“The provisional ballot is a way for marking a ballot, and it’s put in an envelope with your name on it in case there’s some sort of concern. If you lose a ballot or you spoil it, or you haven’t received your early ballot, you can still vote with a provisional ballot at your polling place.”
You can’t change your vote
“Once you cast your ballot, your ballot is cast, it can’t be retrieved, and it cannot be changed. So, that’s why it’s really good to prepare in advance of marking it.”
Secretary Evnan wrapped up by telling KLIN News residents can expect the very first results to begin coming out at 8 PM CT.