Ballots hit the mail
Dowling said all Cedar County voters should get their ballots this week
HARTINGTON — The post office in Hartington will be getting a large influx of mail on Wednesday.
That’s when the nearly 6,000 primary election ballots will be mailed to all registered voters in the county.
The first primary ballots will hit mailboxes by Friday, said Cedar County Clerk Dave Dowling.
The county went to a mail-only process for elections more than a decade ago.
Voters have until 8 p.m., on Election Day, May 10 to return ballots. All the ballots come with paid postage to return or voters can drop them off at the drop box on the north side of the Cedar County Courthouse. Completed ballots can also be handed off at the County Clerk’s Office. Most of the ballots come in early with only about two dozen coming
Most of the ballots come in early with only about two dozen coming in on Election Day itself, Dowling said.
Once received, the ballot’s barcode is scanned and then put into a secure box by voter precinct.
That makes his job easy when it comes to tallying the vote once 8 p.m. hits. Usually, results are available by 9 p.m., he said.
He estimates about a 75 percent return of ballots this year.