The November election officially gets underway Thursday

The 2016 General Election is November 8th.  However, as of Thursday absentee balloting can begin--either in person at the Winneshiek County Auditor's office or through the mail.

If a voter has already submitted an absentee ballot request, they should receive the ballot in the mail on Thursday or within a few days.

The County Auditor's Office is reminding the public it does not send voter registration forms or absentee ballot requests in the mail, unless the voter contacts the Auditor's office asking them to do so. 

However, many political parties and campaigns send absentee ballot forms to voters, sometimes using old data when generating these forms.  If you receive a form in the mail that is inaccurate or for a person who no longer lives at your address, it probably means the political party or candidate does not have up-to-date information.  Many voters have reported that forms with out-of-date information have been received with incorrect names, incorrect addresses, a name of a voter who has moved or died, etc.  This is an issue with the political party's or candidate's data, not necessarily an issue with the voter's official registration information.

A voter can confirm that their official registration information is correct by contacting the Winneshiek County Auditor at 563-382-5085 or e-mailing auditor@co.winneshiek.ia.us.