By ARIADNE WILL
Sentinel Staff Writer
This year’s municipal election will allow Sitkans to vote in a multitude of ways.
But Municipal Clerk Sara Peterson says that’s nothing new.
“All of these options have been available to voters every year,” she told the Sentinel. “I think that this year, because of the pandemic, we will see people using some of the options other than going to the polls on election day.”
Voting options include casting a ballot by mail, voting in person before election day, voting on election day, and voting by representative.
To vote in this election at all, voters need to make sure they are registered by Sept. 6, a month before the election.
People can check their registration status or register to vote by visiting cityofsitka.com and reading the information under the second headline.
Residents can also register in person by visiting the Municipal Clerk’s office on the third floor of city hall.
They can apply for a mail-in ballot at the same place, or on the City website.
Mail-in ballots will be sent out no later than Sept. 15, Peterson said.
Once they receive the ballots, voters must have them postmarked no later than Oct. 6 or returned to the municipal clerk by 5 p.m. when her office closes for the day.
She said that voters mailing in ballots need to take into account the procedures at the Sitka post office.
“If they don’t put it into the Sitka slot at the post office – the one inside the building – their ballot will go to Juneau and come back to us,” she said.
This will add additional days to the ballot’s delivery.
“It’s something folks should be cautious of,” Peterson said.
Voters who want to vote in person but who do not want to or cannot attend the polls on election day can participate by advanced in-person voting.
Advanced in-person voting will be open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays Sept. 21 to Oct. 5 at Harrigan Centennial Hall.
Ballots from advanced in-person voting will be counted Oct. 7, the day after the election.
A voter who is unable to get to the polls or request a mail-in ballot can send a personal representative to pick up a ballot.
Personal representatives must be 18 years of age or older. They must go to Harrigan Centennial Hall during the advanced voting period or on election day to receive a ballot.
“(The representatives) are checking out a ballot for that individual and they just need to be sure that it’s returned no later than 8 p.m. on election day,” Peterson said.
In-person voting on election day will take place 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. at Harrigan Centennial Hall.
Peterson said voters who choose to go to the polls in person will see voting booths placed six feet apart, poll workers wearing masks and other PPE, and regular cleanings of common surfaces.
She said that voters are encouraged to wear face coverings.
“We’re really trying to have a safe environment for our workers and for voters,” she said.
