Early voting for the national election begins in Haines and Skagway

Early voting for the November 3 general election began in Haines and Skagway on Tuesday. Municipal officials have been busy running voting booths out of their offices. 

This year Upper Lynn Canal voters will choose a U.S. Senator, a U.S. Representative and the president of the United States. There are also two statewide ballot measures: one proposes to raise taxes on the state’s largest oil producers and the other would implement ranked choice voting and require more political donors to disclose the source of their money. 

Haines residents Leslie Roussan and Sue Libenson visited the Haines Borough Administration building Tuesday morning to cast their votes. Libenson said she just wanted to make sure she didn’t miss the opportunity to vote this year.

“People get busy and they forget to vote. It’s just important to vote, and we really are fortunate in Haines to have the option of voting early,” Libenson said. 

Roussan said she is leaving town before election day and prefers to vote in person. She said the first day of early voting was fairly busy for a small town. She waited behind four people to cast her ballot. That’s nothing compared to the wait times in other areas of the country.

“I feel lucky that it’s so easy here to vote. I appreciate that,” Roussan said. 

The borough’s administration building is the only place in Haines where you can vote in-person before election day. Voters need personal identification such as a driver’s license, passport, or voter registration card to cast their ballot. They are also required to wear a mask while inside the building to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Skagway early in-person voting takes place at City Hall and is still happening despite the municipality’s shelter in place order. Early in-person voting takes place on weekdays from 8am to 5pm in Skagway and weekdays from 9am to 5pm in Haines until election day. 

According to Haines Borough Clerk Alekka Fullerton, the difference between voting early versus on election day is how and when the ballot is counted. 

“Your ballot will be sent to Juneau to be counted in the early voting period, whereas on election day it will be voted immediately through the optical scan machines.”

Voters can also cast absentee ballots by mail. Haines and Skagway residents can request that the Alaska Division of Elections send them an absentee ballot in the mail that they can fill out and return before election day. Voters also have the option to request that a ballot be sent to them by email which they can then print, fill out and mail to the Division of Elections. 

State law usually requires absentee voters to have a witness co-sign their ballots, but that rule has been suspended during the pandemic. 

To request an absentee ballot visit the Alaska Division of Elections website.