The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Last day to register October 9
If you missed the voter registration party at the Last Steep last month, there’s still time to save your soul and register to vote. But let’s face it: Gone are the days when everyone headed to the polls to pull a lever and get an “I voted” sticker in person. Now, there are squares to fill in, mail-in ballot options, early voting and several ways to make sure your information is up to date—so read on to make sure you know how to make your vote count come election day.
Voter Registration
The last day to register to vote is Tuesday, October 9 at 5 p.m. That’s a statewide deadline, and there will be no exceptions. If you have a valid Colorado driver’s license or Colorado ID, you can go to www.govotecolorado.com to register to vote.
If you do not have either of those forms of ID, you have several options: visit the county’s main elections office at the Blackstock Government Center in Gunnison at 221 North Wisconsin Street, Suite C; email ksimillion@gunnisoncounty.org or dfolowell@gunnisoncounty.org; call the Gunnison County Elections Office and request that a registration be mailed to you; or go to the Gunnison County web site and download the appropriate forms (see contact information below).
Updating Voter Information
If you’re registered to vote in Gunnison County, but you have moved since the last election, have a new post office box, or need to change some other miscellaneous piece of information, visit www.govotecolorado.com by October 9. Or, choose any of the options outlined under “Voter Registration.”
Early Voting
Early voting runs October 22-26, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., Saturday, October 27 between 9 a.m. and noon, or Monday, October 29 through Friday, November 2, 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Blackstock Government Center in Gunnison. The last day to vote early is Friday, November 2.
Mail-in Ballots
Voters registered as permanent mail-in voters should start receiving their ballots this week.
Ballots must be returned to the Elections Office by 7 p.m. on voting day—the same time the polls close. It is not a postmark date. You can request a mail-in ballot on the Elections Office website (see below).
Voting Day
For the record, voting day is November 6, 2012. You’ll be weighing on everything from the president to how marijuana legalization is handled in the state of Colorado to county commissioners. Local polls are open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. at the following locations:
Precinct 3: Parish Hall, corner of 4th and Sopris in Crested Butte.
Precinct 4: Mt. Crested Butte Town Hall, 911 Gothic Rd., Mt. Crested Butte
Precinct 5: Sunset Hall, 349 Teocalli Rd., Crested Butte
Precincts 6–15: Fred Field Western Heritage Center, 275 S. Spruce St., Gunnison
**Take note, Precinct 3 is a new voting location to replace the Crested Butte Town Hall.
If you are registered to vote, and you have not received a voter information card from the Elections Office with your precinct, mail-in status, and polling location, chances are the Elections Office doesn’t have your current address. Pick up the phone and double check with the Elections Office (contact info below).
A note on rumored purging of the voter rolls
There has been some hubbub and concern over voter purging, specifically some concerns that inactive mail-in voters might be purged from the rolls. According to Gunnison County elections officer Kathy Simillion, that is not the case.
“That is misinformation. No one has been purged from any rolls in Colorado. It’s not even within the law,” she said. Rumors have surfaced in the last couple of weeks but it all comes down to misinformation.
Contact information
Elections Office: 641-7927
Clerk & Recorder’s Office, including the Elections Office:
http://www.gunnisoncounty.org/clerk_recorder.html
*Download forms to request a mail-in ballot or register to vote.
Elections resources:
http://www.gunnisoncounty.org/elections.html
*For polling locations, early voting information, voter registration forms, and more.
