Election Day FAQ: Where can I vote? What if I’m not registered?
The 2022 election is here, and voters are already casting their ballots. Here’s a list of frequently asked questions and answers about the election, with some helpful links for voters to find more information.
Where do I go to vote on Election Day?
You can go to any voting center anywhere in Clark County to cast your ballot in person on Election Day, or to drop off your completed mail ballot. The county maintains a list of locations and a map on its website. Starting on Election Day, you can also use the county’s online voting center locator tool, which will find the center nearest to you.
What district am I in? Who are my elected representatives?
You can find out who your representatives are by entering your information on the Clark County election department’s website. Along with your personal voter registration information, you will see a list of your elected representatives.
How do I register to vote? Or check if I’m already registered to vote?
You can look up your voter registration on the Clark County election department website. You can also register to vote, change your registration (including switching parties or updating your address) on the Nevada secretary of state’s website.
Can I register to vote on the same day as I early vote, or on Election Day?
Yes, you can register to vote all the way up to Election Day. You will need to bring a Nevada-issued driver’s license or identification card to the polls with you in order to register and vote on the same day, according to the secretary of state’s office.
Where can I find out more information about the candidates?
First, the Review-Journal’s voter guide contains interviews with nearly every candidate running for office in 2022. Second, the newspaper asked all candidates running for office to submit information about their campaigns to us, and that information can be found here.
In addition, you can see each candidates’ financial disclosure form and campaign fundraising reports on the secretary of state’s website.
And you can see a list of every candidate and contest on the November ballot on the Clark County election department’s website.
How do I use a mail-in ballot?
All active registered voters should have received a mail-in ballot. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, only a fraction of Nevadans voted by mail, including those living part-time in other places, those who could not be in the state during early voting on or Election Day, or those serving in the military. But in 2020, in an effort to keep election workers and voters safe during the pandemic, the Legislature in special session passed a law to send all active registered voters a mail ballot; in 2021, lawmakers made that process permanent.
Each mail ballot will have detailed instructions on its use, but there are a few important things to remember:
— Fill in the bubble next to the name of your preferred candidate completely. If you make a mistake, cross out that person’s name, and fill in the bubble next to your preferred candidate. Don’t use Liquid Paper, correction tape or Wite-Out to erase the mistake.
— You must sign the outside of your mail ballot, or it will be set aside and not counted until its authenticity can be confirmed. If your signature doesn’t match the signature on file with the county elections office, the ballot will also be set aside until you can be contacted and your identity and vote confirmed. This process is known as “curing” a signature. Voters have until Nov. 14 to cure a mismatched signature, or their ballot will not be counted.
— You can send your ballot in by mail, or drop it off at any early voting location or Election Day vote center.
How do I know that my mail ballot was received and counted?
You can track your mail ballot, either via the secretary of state’s website or by using the website BallotTrax.
What if I don’t want to vote by mail?
Early voting ended on Nov. 4, but you can vote in person from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 8, at any voting center in Clark County, regardless of where you live. (Scroll down for a list of voting centers.)
If you decide you don’t want to use your mail ballot, bring it with you to the polls during early voting or on Election Day, so you can surrender it to elections workers. If you forget to bring your mail ballot with you when you vote in person, you will be asked to sign an affidavit certifying that you will not vote again by mail, since voting more than once in the same election is a felony.
What can I expect when I go to vote in person?
First, you’ll be asked to sign in on a tablet, where your signature will be compared to the one on file at the county election office. Once your signature is verified, you will be given a card that you will insert into an electronic voting machine. You can program the machine to display the choices in English, Spanish and Tagalog, as well as to increase the display size to make it easier to read.
To vote, simply touch the bubble next to the name of the candidate you prefer. If you change your mind, touch that selection again to de-select it, and chose another candidate. You will be guided through several pages of the ballot, until you have made all your selections. (The machine will let you know if you try to leave before making a choice in each race.)
When you’re done voting, the machine will print a paper receipt in a small printer next to the display screen that you can verify before you finally cast your ballot. Once you double check all your choices are correct, press the “cast ballot” button, and return the activation card to a poll worker. Workers are available to assist during your voting if you have questions or run in to technical issues.
Remember, even though polls close at 7 p.m., if you are in line at that time, stay in line. You will be allowed to vote if you are in line by 7 p.m.
When will we know who won?
On Election Day, once all voters have voted and all polling places are closed, counties across Nevada will begin releasing their results, and transmitting them to the secretary of state’s office, where they will be posted onto a results website. The results of all in-person early and Election Day voting will be released sometime on the night of the election, along with all mail-ballot results that have been tabulated by Election Day. No results will be released until every voter in every county has finished casting a ballot.
There will, however, be mail ballots that arrive after Election Day that will still be counted and that could change results. (To be counted, all mail ballots must be postmarked no later than Election Day, and received by county election offices by Nov. 12.) Final unofficial results should be released by Nov. 15, seven days after Election Day, and certified by counties by Nov. 18. The Nevada Supreme Court will conduct a canvass of the election results on Nov. 22, when the results will become official.
I’ve got another question. What should I do?
You can send an email to SSebelius@reviewjournal.com with your question, and we’ll do our best to update this story with additional info. You can also find plenty of helpful information about the election at the Clark County elections department’s website, or the secretary of state’s website.
Contact Steve Sebelius at SSebelius@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0253. Follow @SteveSebelius on Twitter.
2022 Election Day Vote Centers/Mail Ballot Drop-Off Locations by Las Vegas Review-Journal on Scribd