LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Governor Asa Hutchinson says if any Arkansan has a COVID-19 related health concern, they can request an absentee ballot for the Nov. 3 election.
Chairmen of the state's two major political parties appeared with Gov. Hutchinson during his daily COVID-19 briefing Thursday (July 2) to support the interpretation.
Early voting begins two weeks ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
You can contact your county clerk to receive an absentee ballot. You must be a registered voter and you must include your voter ID when absentee voting.
The deadline to register to vote is Oct. 5.
“We now face the challenge of educating voters on how to properly obtain and use absentee ballots," said DPA Chairman Michael John Gray. "But this is how we get things done. We look past our differences to see what makes the most sense. We'll work to make sure that voters know the process, and that local officials have the funding and people needed to carry it out, in addition to maintaining safe in-person polling sites."
Voters will need to:
- Request an Absentee Ballot Application by contacting their County Clerk or downloading the application from the Secretary of State.
- Return or mail the Absentee Ballot Application back.
- Receive their Absentee Ballot from their County Clerk’s office.
- Fill out their Absentee Ballot and return it to their Country Clerk’s office by October 27th.
- Your ballot must include a copy of a Photo ID
As of Thursday (July 2), there are 878 new cases, which is the highest amount of cases the state has seen in a single day, totaling 22,075 so far since the beginning of the pandemic. 272 people are hospitalized, and there are two new deaths, totaling 279.
In the last 24 hours, Washington County reported 117 new cases, Benton County reported 75, Sebastian County reported 55 and Crawford County reported 23.