Tom Stanton, KLIN News
With less than a week till Election Day, voters in Lancaster County are getting it out of the way.
Lincoln-Lancaster County Election Commissioner Todd Wiltgen says 48,977 early vote ballots have been returned to his office via mail or drop-off as of Tuesday, October 29.
With around 60,000 voters in the county requesting early ballots, this marks a return rate of approximately 81% — just six days before Election Day on Nov. 5.
Wiltgen reminds early voters that ballots must be received no later than 8:00 PM on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5th. He encourages voters not wait until the last minute, and suggests the best method to return ballots would be to drop them off at one of the secure drop boxes listed below:
- Election Commissioner, 601 North 46th Street
- Anderson Branch Library, 3635 Touzalin Avenue
- Eiseley Branch Library, 1530 Superior Street
- Gere Branch Library, 2400 South 56th Street
- Walt Branch Library, 6701 South 14th Street
Nebraska law does not allow early vote ballots to be returned to a voter’s polling location on Election Day.
The drop boxes are emptied daily by two election officials of differing parties and monitored by video surveillance. They also contain fire suppression systems.
Any voter who has requested an early vote ballot and attempts to vote at their polling place on Election Day will be required to use a provisional ballot which will require additional time and paperwork. Provisional ballots will not be counted until the Election Office verifies that the voter did not return their early vote ballot which can take several days following the election.
Voters may check the status of their early vote ballot at: votercheck.necvr.ne.gov.
Individuals who have questions about early voting should contact the Election Commissioner’s Office at (402) 441-7311.