Sarasota County voters urged to return vote-by-mail ballots promptly for the Aug. 18 Primary

All ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Night

These links are provided on the ‘Vote by Mail’ webpage on the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections website. Image courtesy of the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections

Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Ron Turner is urging voters who have requested vote-by-mail ballots for the Aug. 18 Primary Election to vote and return those ballots promptly so the documents are received in time to be counted.

“Vote-by-mail ballots must be received in the elections office by 7 p.m. on Election Night,” Turner said in a news release. “Because we have sent out a record number of vote-by-mail ballots for this election, I strongly urge voters to return them as soon as possible to avoid mail delays and the risk of being received too late to be counted,” he added in the release.

Turner also is reminding voters that the deadline to request that ballots be mailed to them for this election is 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 8.

To request a vote-by-mail ballot, a voter may call 941-861-8618, submit an online request at SarasotaVotes.com/VotebyMail or make a request by email to votebymail@SarasotaVotes.com and include the voter’s name, birth date and address where the ballot should be mailed, the release points out.

Voted ballots may be returned by mail or in person to any of the three elections offices — in Sarasota, Venice or North Port, the release adds.

During normal business hours, the release continues, voters also may drop voted ballots into secure vote-by-mail drop boxes located in all three elections offices. The ballots also may be put into boxes inside early voting locations when those are open, as noted at SarasotaVotes.com.

Turner cautions voters to carefully read and follow the instructions included with vote-by-mail ballots to ensure their ballots are counted, the release stresses. A voter should complete and sign the oath on the ballot certificate (return) envelope, and the voter’s signature should match the signature on record in the elections office.

A voter may track his or her vote-by-mail ballot from the time the request for the ballot has been processed until the voted ballot has been received and tabulated by the elections office, the release notes. To track a ballot, click on the “Vote-by-Mail” icon at SarasotaVotes.com, select the “Track your Vote-by-Mail Ballot” link “and follow the easy instructions,” the release says.

For more information, contact the Supervisor of Elections Office at 861-8618 or visit SarasotaVotes.com.