Bozeman — With Election Day approaching on November 8, some Bozeman residents have yet to receive their absentee ballots in the mail. For those who haven’t received their ballots, it’s important to know what other options they have to get their votes.
Residents like Tammy Parent were frustrated that they weren’t getting their ballots in the mail, so they went to the USPS location on Baxter Lane to see if they could find their ballots.
“[I] When I asked if she could check our ballots, she went to the back, talked to people, looked around, and came back with three pieces of junk mail, but that it was ours. I understand,” says Parent.
With the inability to receive ballots in the mail, voters like Kevin Kennedy are looking for other options on how to address the issue.
“I called the county elections office and told them to give you guys power, but they said no. says.
Election administrator, clerk and recorder Eric Semerado said his office had received several calls about missing ballots from local residents on rural routes. He shares some options people have to make sure their votes count. One of which he is an alternate vote.
“I would like to request a replacement ballot. The easiest way to do this is to come to the office here, and you can request that ballot at any time,” says Semerad.
Semerad said going to the county court elections office is the easiest way to solve the problem of lost ballots because you don’t have to wait for ballots to be mailed.
“We had someone resend the ballot, and then it went through the post office again.
Another option for voters is to have someone else pick up their ballot.
“You can designate who receives the ballot,” says Semerad. you. “
Semerado also believes there have been more complaints about non-delivery of ballots this year than in previous elections.
“Apparently, it was just a little thing. More this time around, which makes sense given the staffing levels the post office has had to deal with lately,” says Semerad.
So far, elections offices have received about 11,672 absentee ballots as of Thursday afternoon. In Gallatin County he has 75,000 registered voters, of which he is absent from 63,000. Not all voters can always vote.
“We get 63,000 ballots every election, and some votes don’t get there,” says Semerad.
Voters may also obtain voter details by visiting sos.mt.gov.
