What to know for the upcoming primary election in Kentucky

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) — The primary election is just around the corner, and for some, voting in person on election day might not be a possibility.

“Today is the first day of what we call in-person, absentee voting. People who want to vote in person, that’s how they want to vote, but they can’t vote during early voting days or on election day, but they still want to vote in person,” said Secretary of State Michael Adams, on absentee in-person voting beginning on Wednesday.

“If you have requested such a ballot, you can track it online at govoteky.com you can see when it went out, you can make arrive back at your clerk’s office and that they count your vote.
That’s important information. I want to remind everyone if you are voting by absentee ballot. Make sure that you get that back to us by election day. Don’t mail on election day, it’ll be too late,” said Adams.

One thing to keep in mind is that you may return your ballot by mail or in the ballot drop box in your county clerk’s office. All ballots must reach the clerk’s office by 6 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.

But if you’re not voting absentee, “you’ve got plenty of time, you’ve got this week and the first of next week to vote in person absentee, you’ve got three days of expanded, no excuse, early voting. Thursday the 11th through Saturday the 13th, Saturday, that’s great for most people, and then, of course, you got Tuesday Election Day.”

Secretary Adams says while this is the election in a four-year cycle that tends to have the lowest turnout, voters shouldn’t be discouraged.

He also wants to clear any misconceptions that may be out there, “allegedly, the early voting is rigged and I get to see the results before anyone else or the clerks do, that’s total nonsense. We do get to see how many votes have been cast, that’s relevant information that helps us put information out to the public and be transparent about how many votes have been cast, how many cast by registered voters of each party. That’s important information for the campaigns to have, for the parties to have and the electorate to have. It’s transparent. But what we do not have access to is how people voted,” he adds.

Adams also encourages people to vote early to avoid long lines.

He also wants to remind everyone if you’re in line by 6 o’clock on Election Day, you will still be able to vote.

You can view your polling location by clicking here.