For the first time in Virginia's history, voters will be able to vote in-person early — 45 days before the November 3rd election.

From today, September 18th to Saturday, October 31st, local voters can vote in-person at the voter registrar offices in Winchester, Frederick County and Clarke County. The early voting was made possible by legislation passed by the General Assembly earlier this year.

October 13th is the last day to register to vote in the November election.

When voting early the registrar’s office or a satellite voting location, voters must provide their name and address and show an acceptable form of ID. They will then fill out their ballot, which will be fed into a machine. Curbside voting is available upon request at all three local registrar’s offices and a satellite office for Frederick County residents.

In person voting:

Frederick County:

• The Frederick County Voter Registration Office — 107 N. Kent St., Suite 102. Voting will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, with the exception of federal and state holidays. Voting will also take place the two Saturdays prior to Election Day — Oct. 24 and Oct. 31 — from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• A new satellite office at 261-263 Sunnyside Plaza Drive. The satellite office will be available to Frederick County voters from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, with the exception of federal and state holidays. Voting will take place the two Saturdays prior to Election Day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Winchester:

In the City of Winchester, in person-voting will take place at the Winchester City Voter Registration Office at 107 N. East Lane. In-person voting will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. the two Saturdays prior to Election Day (Oct. 24 and Oct. 31).

Clarke County:

Clarke County Voter Registrar Barbara Bosserman said that in-person voting for Clarke County voters will take place at 101 Chalmers Court from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. the two Saturdays prior to Election Day (Oct. 24 and Oct. 31)

Voting by mail:

Voters can also vote prior to Election Day by mail. Voters can request a mail-in ballot with a mail ballot application. The request for a ballot can be sent to a voter’s local election office or the mail-in-ballot application can be accessed online at: www.elections.virginia.gov/casting-a-ballot/absentee-voting. The deadline to request a ballot by mail is Oct. 23.

When the ballot arrives, voters should read it carefully and follow the instructions to complete and return it. The ballots should be mailed to the local registrar's office or returned in-person. The voter registrars will accept ballots in person up through 7 p.m. Nov. 3. Ballots mailed to the voter registrar's office will be accepted by noon the Friday after Election Day as long as they are postmarked Nov. 3.

Third party mailings:

The Center for Voter Information recently mailed absentee ballot applications to Virginia residents. The Virginia Department of Elections said in a news release that it has no affiliation with this group nor does it coordinate with any third-party groups on campaign efforts. The Department of Elections says it is aware that voters in multiple localities who received an absentee ballot application were given pre-paid return envelopes addressed to the incorrect registrar’s office.

The Virginia Department of Elections encourages all voters who would like to receive an absentee ballot for the November election to apply electronically on its website www.elections.virginia.gov/voterinformation. Those who have already applied for an absentee ballot, do not need to submit a new application. Other inquiries regarding this mailing can be directed to the Center for Voter Information.

Venskoske said while the third-party absentee ballot applications from the Center for Voter Information aren’t a scam, he said these applications do not always have accurate information. He said many people are getting applications from the Center for Voter Information with their names misspelled or are asking voters to submit their applications to the wrong election offices. He said if an application is turned in with a misspelled name, it will not be accepted.

For more information, contact your local voter registrar's office:

Frederick County: 540-665-5660.

Winchester 540-545-7910.

Clarke County 540-955-5168.

SOURCE: WinchesterStar.com

Bobby Bones

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