By Kayla Anderson
MCIN
The 2020 Primary Election is coming up on June 9 and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, things are run a little differently this year. Mineral County active registered voters have probably already noticed that they received their sample ballots in the mail and will make their choices and mail it back in to have their votes counted.
The Mineral County Clerk’s Office located at 105 S. A Street, Suite 1 in Hawthorne will serve as the main polling place on June 9, open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., but voting activities will be limited to same-day registration, in-person ballot deliveries and replacement ballot pick-ups.
Mineral County Clerk’s Office Treasurer Chris Nepper confirms that everything is mail-in only this year and if anyone is an active voter but has a problem with their ballot (it was somehow destroyed or not received) then they can go to the County Clerk’s Office and receive a new one during the Early Voting period open through the end of this week. New voters who have just registered or those who have updated their voter registration online also must appear in person to receive a mail-in ballot during the early voting period open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day through this Friday, June 5.
Voting Mineral County residents will be able to vote for a federal U.S. Representative in Congress, District 4; Justice of the Supreme Court Seats B and D, and a person to fill a seat within the State Board of Education for District 4.
Local offices specific to Mineral County are limited to the Mineral County School Board of Trustees where Kathryn Castagnola (incumbent), Juanita Diede, and Tyler J. Viani (incumbent) are the only choices for each of those three seats. For more information about the Mineral County School District, visit http://www.mineral.k12.nv.us/.
“There are no voting machines here (for the Primary Election) but hopefully for the General Election we’ll be back to normal,” Nepper says. He believes that people like voting in person through the voting terminals but ensures that the votes are just as secure through the paper ballots.
“Everything is verified, signatures are verified, and there are plenty of secrecy protections so that a poll worker can’t see who you’re voting for. I encourage everyone to send their ballots back in if they’re so inclined to vote,” says Nepper.
Again, Early Voting is going on through the end of this week and people should go to the Mineral County Clerk’s Office if they are active voters but need a new mail-in ballot. The Office is open through this Friday, June 5 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and next Tuesday, June 9 (aka 2020 Primary Election Day) from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Those who want to register same day must be at least 18 years old and have a current and valid Nevada Driver’s License.
