By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Election season is just around the corner. July 12 is the final day to register to vote ahead of the Aug. 2 primary election. The August ballot will include several contested primaries in Barton County, as well as the constitutional amendment question pertaining to abortion.
"Unaffiliated voters can declare up to and on Election Day," said Barton County Clerk and Election Officer Bev Schmeidler. "They can pick a party if they want to vote that party ticket. If you are already registered as one of the major parties, you cannot unaffiliate. That deadline passed on June 10th. That can't be done until the election is over and closed."
The United States Supreme Court's recent reversal of Roe v. Wade has put the abortion issue back on the front burner. The proposed constitutional amendment regarding a state right to abortion is expected to bring out more voters than usual. Unaffiliated voters and those registered as Libertarians can still vote on the constitutional amendment.
Locally, the Republican primary will feature several contested races. There are currently four candidates in the Barton County Commission, District 1 race, and two candidates are vying for spots in each of the fourth and fifth districts.
"As long as I've been in this office, I don't think we've had that much interest in our county commisison races before," Schmeidler said. "That's definitely different. A lot of people are interested and that's a good thing."
Early voting may begin as early as July 13 around Kansas. Schmeidler said early voting in Barton County will depend on the availability of materials.
'That's dependent on if we have all of our media, if we have our ballots, and everything we need for the machines back," she said. "When we start early voting, we'll do it from 8-5, Monday through Friday, up until noon the day before the election."
Primary day polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 2. Photo IDs are required, and both machine and paper ballots will be available.