July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Changes in store for area voters (04/12/06)
By By MARY ANN LEWIS-
Jay County voters will be experiencing some significant changes when they cast ballots in the May 2 primary election.
Not only will some be voting in a new location, but a photo I.D. will now be required before selecting a favorite candidate.
Jay County Clerk Jane Ann Runyon said this week that the official photo identification — such as a driver’s license — must be presented before a voter will be issued a ballot.
Passed into law by the Indiana state government, the ID process is aimed at preventing voter fraud, she explained. This will be the first time ID will be required to vote in Indiana, Runyon said, “The law just now becomes effective.”
Indiana is the only state to require the photo ID.
The ID can be the name and photo of the person with an expiration date which is current or expired after November 2004 — or an ID issued by the U.S. or the State of Indiana.
Proof of ID does not have to have the voter’s address, only a photo, and the ID will be required at primary as well as general elections.
All voters voting in person will be asked by precinct workers to present that proof. If a voter declines or refuses to do so, they cannot be given an official ballot, Runyon explained.
If a voter cannot present a photo ID before signing the poll list, that voter will be given the opportunity to vote on a provisional ballot, Runyon said, or he or she may leave the polling place and return with the proper ID.
Absentee voters casting a ballot by mail, a voter voting before the traveling board, or a resident of a nursing home who votes in person at the polling site in the nursing home, are exempt from presenting an ID.
As for the change in some polling sites, county officials have changed nine sites because the existing locations did not meet provisions in the Help America Vote Act, which required compliance of polling sites with the American With Disabilities Act. Common problems with standards include paved parking or ramps installed at the voting site and other access issues.
That change was also mandated by the state with this year’s primary election.
Since there will now be four precincts voting at the Jay Community Center, Runyon explained that they will be marked to help voters find the proper voting site.
Additionally, Runyon reminded residents that absentee voting is now underway in the south hallway on the first floor of the courthouse.
Voters may cast an absentee ballot Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Saturday, April 22, and Saturday, April 29, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day.
The deadline to vote this way is Monday, May 1, at noon.
Also, anyone voting by mail should have an application on file and that ballot must be received by noon on election day, May 2. Anyone casting a ballot as a confined voter should also have the ballot returned by noon, May 1.
Anyone with any questions about any of the changes with this year’s primary election should call Runyon at (260) 726-4951.[[In-content Ad]]
Not only will some be voting in a new location, but a photo I.D. will now be required before selecting a favorite candidate.
Jay County Clerk Jane Ann Runyon said this week that the official photo identification — such as a driver’s license — must be presented before a voter will be issued a ballot.
Passed into law by the Indiana state government, the ID process is aimed at preventing voter fraud, she explained. This will be the first time ID will be required to vote in Indiana, Runyon said, “The law just now becomes effective.”
Indiana is the only state to require the photo ID.
The ID can be the name and photo of the person with an expiration date which is current or expired after November 2004 — or an ID issued by the U.S. or the State of Indiana.
Proof of ID does not have to have the voter’s address, only a photo, and the ID will be required at primary as well as general elections.
All voters voting in person will be asked by precinct workers to present that proof. If a voter declines or refuses to do so, they cannot be given an official ballot, Runyon explained.
If a voter cannot present a photo ID before signing the poll list, that voter will be given the opportunity to vote on a provisional ballot, Runyon said, or he or she may leave the polling place and return with the proper ID.
Absentee voters casting a ballot by mail, a voter voting before the traveling board, or a resident of a nursing home who votes in person at the polling site in the nursing home, are exempt from presenting an ID.
As for the change in some polling sites, county officials have changed nine sites because the existing locations did not meet provisions in the Help America Vote Act, which required compliance of polling sites with the American With Disabilities Act. Common problems with standards include paved parking or ramps installed at the voting site and other access issues.
That change was also mandated by the state with this year’s primary election.
Since there will now be four precincts voting at the Jay Community Center, Runyon explained that they will be marked to help voters find the proper voting site.
Additionally, Runyon reminded residents that absentee voting is now underway in the south hallway on the first floor of the courthouse.
Voters may cast an absentee ballot Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Saturday, April 22, and Saturday, April 29, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day.
The deadline to vote this way is Monday, May 1, at noon.
Also, anyone voting by mail should have an application on file and that ballot must be received by noon on election day, May 2. Anyone casting a ballot as a confined voter should also have the ballot returned by noon, May 1.
Anyone with any questions about any of the changes with this year’s primary election should call Runyon at (260) 726-4951.[[In-content Ad]]
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