FAQs

Are there any disadvantages to Absentee/Early Voting?

There are two main issues to educate yourself on about the way Wyoming's Absentee voting works:

If you vote for too many people (for example you accidentally marked two people when you should have marked one) [this is called an overvote] and you submit your ballot at your precinct on election day then the machine would indicate this and give you an opportunity to request another ballot. If you Absentee vote you do not get the same opportunity.

If you mail your ballot there is no guarantee that the postal service will return the ballot on time. You can always return your ballot in person, if that is an option for your situation

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Absentee/Early Voting

1. What is Absentee/Early Voting?: Absentee voting allows you to cast your official ballot before election day, and optionally by mail. Because Wyoming is a "no-excuse" state it resembles what many other states refer to as Early Voting.

2. Do I have to give a reason to Absentee/Early Vote?: No, in Wyoming any qualified voter may cast their vote by absentee ballot. Absentee voting in Wyoming is "no-excuse", meaning that you do not have to give an excuse to absentee vote.

To absentee vote you can:

Request a Ballot in Person: By visiting the County Clerk, Elections Department in person at the old courthouse.

Request a Ballot be Mailed to you: By calling the County Clerk, Elections Department at 235-9217 you can request that a ballot be mailed to you.

First, seal your ballot in the provided envelope, then make sure to sign the envelope! Envelopes that are not signed can NOT be counted.

After the ballot has been sealed and the envelope signed then you may either:

Return the envelope by mail: By attaching appropriate postage to the envelope and dropping it into any US Mailbox.

Return the envelope in person: By dropping it off in person to the County Clerk, Elections Department located in room 154 of the old Courthouse.

5. How many stamps are required when mailing an absentee ballot to the Clerk's office?: An absentee ballot requires one stamp.

6. Do I have to sign the envelope? Will my ballot remain secret?: Yes, you must sign the envelope! If you were to vote at a precinct on election day you would be required to sign a voter slip before you were given a ballot, the absentee envelope serves as the voter slip in this case. Envelopes that are not signed will not be counted, per state law.

Yes your ballot will remain secret. On election day the Absentee Board meets to conduct the process of ensuring that all the envelopes are signed, and opening only those that are. The envelope is then opened and immediately added to the stack of other ballots to be counted, the ballots themselves are not inspected and once a ballot has been placed on the stack there is no way to identify whose ballot is whose.

7. How long do I have to return my ballot?: The signed envelope must be returned to the courthouse (either by mail or otherwise) by 7:00 pm on election day. If you are returning your ballot by mail then you should plan accordingly.

If you do not have enough time to mail you ballot back then you can brink it back to the courthouse any time before the polls close at 7:00 pm on election day.

8. Can absentee ballots be accepted at the polling place?: No. Absentee ballots cannot be accepted at the polling places. They must be mailed or delivered to the County Clerk's office.

9. Can I vote Early/Absentee at the courthouse?: Yes, as long as it is not election day. If you are already registered to vote you may take the ballot home with you, or you can mark and cast your ballot at the courthouse until 5:00 pm the day before the election.

There are two main issues to educate yourself on about the way Wyoming's Absentee voting works:

If you vote for too many people (for example you accidentally marked two people when you should have marked one) [this is called an overvote] and you submit your ballot at your precinct on election day then the machine would indicate this and give you an opportunity to request another ballot. If you Absentee vote you do not get the same opportunity.

If you mail your ballot there is no guarantee that the postal service will return the ballot on time. You can always return your ballot in person, if that is an option for your situation

11. Can I have someone else return my ballot to the courthouse for me?: Yes. You must be the one to request the ballot; however you can have anyone you trust return the ballot to the ballot box at the old courthouse. Just make sure you sign your envelope.

12. I accidently marked the wrong space on my ballot, what do I do?: Do NOT include a note or X out the mistaken vote. You can request a new ballot by calling the Elections Department at 235-9217.

Wyoming does not have a voter intent law so if a ballot is read by the machine then that is the vote we must tally. A space with too many marks, such as what happens when someone marks an X through a mistaken vote, is called an "overvote" and your vote will not be counted in that contest.