After the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) on Friday morning confirmed the first coronavirus (COVID-19) case in the state, Secretary of State John H. Merrill issued an update on the upcoming March 31 runoff election.
Merrill expressed his confidence in the ability of the ADPH to monitor the potential spread of the virus and for health officials to treat any patients properly.
A release from Merrill’s office explained that it has been in close communication with the local election officials in all 67 of Alabama’s counties to discuss Election Day preparation and encourage preventative measures to maintain the health and safety of voters.
“As of today, the administration of the election will continue as planned,” the release advised, before talking about absentee voting.
“Any person in our state is able to apply for an absentee ballot through contacting their local Absentee Election Manager. Absentee applications can be downloaded on our website AlabamaVotes.gov,” the release detailed.
The release continued, “Voters who are concerned about contracting or spreading an illness or have an infirmity may vote by absentee. The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot is Thursday, March 26, and the last day to postmark or return an absentee ballot by hand is Monday, March 30.”
It should be noted that voters must submit an accompanying copy of their valid photo identification when voting absentee.
The full list of valid forms of photo identification can be found here.
Upon successful application, voters will receive an absentee ballot in the mail.
Read more about the absentee voting process here.
You can also contact the secretary of state’s office at (334) 242-7223 with any questions.
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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