The municipal election is approaching. Eight candidates are running for three Assembly seats, and three candidates are running for two School Board seats. KTOO’s Mike Lane spoke with Deputy Municipal Clerk Andi Hirsh to better understand the local election process, what’s going to be on the ballot, and important dates in September and October to keep in mind.
Listen:
The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.
Andi Hirsh: There are three Assembly seats up. There’s an Assembly Areawide, a District 1 and a District 2 seat up. There’s also two Board of Education seats up.
In addition to that, there are three propositions up this year. So Proposition A is a five-year extension of the temporary 3% sales tax. Proposition B is a charter amendment that was put forth by voters. It would change the mill rate cap to 12 from 9. You may remember last year a group of citizens got together to put something on the ballot that would change our mill rate cap to 9 from 12, so this a different group of citizens have come together to put it on the ballot that would reverse what was voted for last year. Proposition C, we had another group of citizens come together to put forth a proposition for a 1% seasonal sales tax, and so that would be an additional 1% of sales tax in the summer, April 1 to Sept. 30 every year, and the intent that they put forth was to fund indoor and outdoor recreation within the City and Borough of Juneau.
Mike Lane: Are there key dates that voters should know between now and Election Day?
Andi Hirsh: Absolutely. For us, the key date is ballots mail out on Friday, Sept. 18. Most people will get them on Monday, Sept. 21. Monday the 21st is also the day that in-person early voting opens. So we have two locations. You can go to City Hall, or you can go to the Mendenhall Valley Public Library. In-person voting is available to everybody. So people who just prefer it, but also if you didn’t receive a ballot in the mail, this is where you go to get your ballot, or if you need ADA accommodations.
If you are traveling and you’re gone the whole time of the election, the last day to vote would be Tuesday, October 6, Election Day. So if you are gone the whole time, we have a couple options for you as well. You do have to fill out a form and let us know, so we can either mail your ballot to a different address or get you set up with some e-ballot options.
And so, of course, the big date, Tuesday, Oct. 6, by 8 p.m. You have to be in line at a vote center by 8 p.m. to vote. The ballot drop boxes, which are secure drop boxes around town, close exactly at 8 p.m. If you are doing an e-ballot and you’re emailing it back to us, you have to get it back by 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 6 is Election Day, the last day to vote.
Mike Lane: And what should voters do if they’ve moved, changed their name, or they’re not sure that their voter registration is up to date?
Andi Hirsh: Well, fortunately, right now we’re still early enough that you can update your voter registration or register to vote for the first time. So you’ve got 30 days before the election, that’s Sept. 6. You can go online with the State of Alaska Division of Elections and do it there, or you can go in person to the clerk’s office, or the Division of Elections, or any of the public libraries, and they’ll get you re-registered, or update your registration, or register for the first time. So if you are turning 18 on Oct. 6, you’re eligible to vote in our election, but you need to register by Sept. 6.
Mike Lane: What are the most common mistakes that Juneau voters make when filling out their ballots?
Andi Hirsh: We get some people who are just like so excited to vote that they don’t fill out the ballot envelope on the outside, and so what we do need is for people to sign and put a personal identifier, and that signature really needs to match your official signature. If you don’t know what that is, if you look and see what signature is on your driver’s license, that is one of the signatures we’re comparing to. But just taking a second to double check that that is filled out and that you wrote those numbers correctly.
Mike Lane: If you could give Juneau voters any one piece of advice, what would it be?
Andi Hirsh: I’m like a somewhat more nervous person, so I prefer not to wait until Election Day. What if I’m in a car wreck on my way to go vote? So my advice is to just make a plan. Your plan could be Election Day, and maybe make it a party.
The City and Borough of Juneau’s clerk office phone is 907-586-5278, or email cbj.elections@juneau.gov.
