Absentee voting now available

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Absentee voting will be available for the May 8 primary election from now until noon on Monday, May 7.

Any Putnam County resident registered to vote in this election may do so 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 two Saturdays, April 28 and May 5, from 8 a.m.-3 p.m.

A voter 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 Nov. 2, 2010, the last general election.

* Your ID must be issued by the State of Indiana or the U.S. 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 courthouse second floor or may be downloaded from the Indiana Election Division at www.in.gov/sos/elections/ and must be filed before a ballot can be mailed.

The deadline to receive an application for an absentee ballot to be mailed is midnight on Monday, April 30.

For those individuals confined to their homes due to illness, injury or a handicap, a request may also be made that the ballot be brought to their home by a traveling board.

A voter wishing to vote by mail or traveling board does not have to comply with the photo ID law.

To request an absentee ballot application, contact voter registration at 655-1538.

Although the deadline to register to vote in the primary election has passed, citizens still have the opportunity to register for the Nov. 6 general election. Voter registration opens again on May 22 and remains open until Oct. 9.

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