Absentee voting begins April 7

Absentee voting will be available for the May 6, 2008 primary election beginning Tuesday, April 7 and continuing until noon Monday, May 5.

Any Putnam County registered voter qualified to vote in the Primary Election may vote, in advance, on the second floor of the Putnam County Courthouse from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The courthouse will also be open for absentee voting 8 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturday, April 26 and Saturday, May 3. Voters must provide a government-issued photo ID before casting a ballot in-person at the clerk's office or at the polls on Election Day.

The ID must fit the following criteria:

* Your ID must display your photo.

*Your name on the ID must conform with your voter registration record. (Conform does not mean identical)

*Your ID must contain an expiration date and either still be current or have expired sometime after November 7, 2006 (the last General Election day).

*Your ID must be issued by the State of Indiana or the US Government

Any person requiring an absentee ballot to be mailed to them in county, out-of-county or out-of-state must complete an application for an absentee ballot. Forms are available at the voter registration office (on the second floor in the courthouse) and must be filed before the ballot can be mailed. The deadline to receive an application for an absentee ballot to be mailed is midnight Monday, April 28, 2008.

For those individuals confined to their homes due to illness, injury or a handicap, a request may be made that the ballot be brought to their home by a traveling board or they may have a ballot mailed to them by filling out the application for an absentee ballot.

A voter wishing to vote by mail or traveling board does not have to comply with the new photo ID law. To request an absentee ballot application please contact voter registration at 655-1538.

The deadline to vote is April 7, 2008.