By AMY RICKER
Great Bend Post
Nov. 3 is quickly approaching and that means many registered voters will be casting their ballots for their favorite politician. Regardless of which race you are voting in, COVID-19 has changed some of the processes in how and where people can vote.
Barton County Clerk and Election Officer, Donna Zimmerman says they’ve been preparing for Nov. 3 since the day after the primaries.
“There’s been a lot of things that have changed for this general election for us. There’s been changes in voting locations, new ballot drop-boxes, and working with a larger volume of paper with advanced mailed ballots. We are still working and preparing for COVID and the things we can do to make voters safe and secure as they come in to vote. We’re making sure that we can get voters moved through the lines quickly, manage social distancing, and sanitizing. There are a lot of things that go on before an election.”
Zimmerman said it was difficult to find people to help during the primaries, but it hasn’t been quite as hard for the general election.
“As more information became available and they understood what we were tyin to do to make them and the voters safe. Maybe that helped alleviate some of those fears. The primaries are always harder because you always have families going on vacation and families with children at home so they don’t feel they can donate the time. It’s been easier this November, but it’s still been kind of a job to find people that are willing.”
For voters that plan to cast their ballot in-person, screens and barriers will be up, equipment will be sanitized between every voter, and individual sanitized pens will be given out to each person in order to keep everyone safe.
Zimmerman reminds everyone to make sure and bring their voter ID which could be a driver’s license, passport, or conceal & carry permits, to name a few. Without a photo ID, voters will be turned away or made to use a provisional ballot, which is a ballot used for people who arrive at the polls on Election Day and their eligibility to vote is uncertain.