Aren’t we lucky to live in Washington State? We lead the way with secure mail-in ballots. Just register, receive your ballot in the mail in plenty of time, and return it by mail or drop box.
To Register: If you need to register go to votewa.gov, the site of the Secretary of State, where you can also change your address and check your ballot status.
Voters’ guides: Before the election, you will get two voters’ guides in the mail, one with state candidates and one with local candidates. Your ballot will also arrive about two weeks before the election. You can also refer to voters’ guides here and at vote411.org, posted by the League of Women Voters.
To Vote: Make your choices, sign the outer envelope, and drop it in a drop box … or mail it, no postage required. It must be postmarked by election day, so in election week it’s a good idea to use a dropbox.
We encourage you to return it as soon as possible, by mail or to a drop box location in your county: Jefferson, Clallam, and Grays Harbor counties.
Make sure your vote counts! If you write you phone number on the ballot envelope the County Auditor can call you if there’s a problem with your ballot.
After you vote: You can go to votewa.gov and to make sure your ballot was accepted. The main reasons that ballots are not accepted is that the voter forgot the signature or their signature does not match the one on file.
Your county’s Auditor will process the ballots. They check the signature, and contact you if there is an issue with it. On election night, the ballots in the machines are counted. The results are posted quickly (usually by 8:30 or so) at the Secretary of State’s website. Ballots that arrive on election day or trickle in by mail over the following days are counted and added to the totals. Counties certify their results in a few weeks and the state certifies the election after a month.
It is legal in Washington for you to return a ballot for another person. Again, the drop box is the best option. If someone offers to return your ballot for you, be sure it’s someone you trust, get contact information. You can make sure they followed through by checking your Ballot Status at voteWA.gov