Though it seems like the national political conventions were only a few days ago, the 2020 general election is less than two months away and the newspapers are filled with stories about the election and the voting rules that will be followed this year. This newspaper is no different.
Last week and this week your newspaper has printed the application Nuckolls County voters must complete if they choose to vote by mail.
That form should be clipped out of the newspaper and either mailed or personally delivered to the county clerk’s office at the courthouse in Nelson. In Nuckolls and many nearby counties, the county clerk also serves as the county’s top election officer.
Once the properly completed and delivered form is received at the courthouse, it will be processed and checked against the registered voter roll. If all is in order, a paper ballot will be mailed.
In Nebraska, election officers have until Monday, Sept. 28, to prepare the early voter’s ballots for mailing. This Friday is the last day for the secretary of state to certify candidates, offices and issues that will be placed on the statewide ballots.
The deadline to have early voting ballots ready for voting in the clerk’s office is Monday, Oct. 5.
If registering to vote in the general election by mail, the application must be postmarked on Friday, Oct. 16. The deadline to register to vote in person is Friday, Oct. 23.
All requests for early voter’s ballots must be received by Friday, Oct. 23.
The early voting period runs from Monday, Oct. 5, through Monday, Nov. 2.
To be eligible to vote in Nebraska, a Nebraska resident must be at least 18 years of age on or before the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November. Voters must not have been convicted of a felony either in a state or federal court
After the early voter ballot is marked, it may be returned either in person or by mail to the county clerk’s office. The office will have a drop-off box located in the courthouse parking lot. The box was used for the first time with the May primary election.
Applications for early ballots must be received in the clerk’s office by Friday, Oct. 23. So while there is still time, voters should not delay in submitting the request. Nuckolls County residents no longer have the overnight mail service they once enjoyed. A letter from Milford, Neb., to Superior on Sept. 2 was delivered on Sept. 8, a week after mailing. Of course, three of those days were related to the holiday but the delivery demonstrates what is happening to the mail service. It is slower than it once was. Fifty years ago, when bus service connected Superior and Hastings, a letter mailed on a weekday afternoon in Nelson to a post office box in Superior was delivered later that day. But the bus no longer runs and instead the letter must go to Omaha for sorting.
Nuckolls County voters who want to check their registration status may do so via the secretary of state’s website. If one has moved or changed their name, it may be wise to check the registration status prior to election day to make sure all is up to snuff.
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