By Laura Bruns
Contributing columnist
This fall promises many things: the weather will get cooler, the days will get shorter, fall sports will be a hot topic for conversation, and politics will be on many people’s minds as the presidential election draws near.
This column will be a regular feature in the Miami Valley Today in the lead up to the November General Election. Between now and then, I hope to use this space to provide information about how we at the Board of Elections are preparing for what will no doubt be a very busy season.
You can expect to read about several topics in this column:
Election security, specifically what we do to make certain that voting equipment and ballots are secure, that all eligible voters are able to cast their ballots, and how we protect voter data and maintain accurate voter rolls.
Information on the different options voters have for casting their ballots, including absentee by mail, early in-person voting, and voting at the polling location on Election Day.
How and when results are tabulated, and how we prepare and test the voting equipment that counts the votes to ensure accuracy.
The roles of the people who run elections, including board members, staff, precinct election officials, and the Secretary of State’s office.
Let’s start by reviewing the importance of checking your voter registration to make sure your name and address are correct in the voter registration database. Monday, Oct. 7, 2024 at 9 p.m. is the deadline for registering or updating your voter registration.
A voter’s address is a very important part of their voter registration. Your street address determines what congressional, state senate and house districts you live in, what school district you live in (local as well as educational service and vocational district), whether you live in a city, village, or unincorporated area, your township, and a number of other districts like health, library, and cemetery districts. These districts then determine for which candidates and issues each voter is eligible to vote. Having voters’ current addresses ensures that every registered voter receives the correct ballot with all the right contests.
Voters can check if their voter registration is current on the Board of Elections website https://www.boe.ohio.gov/miami/ . Just go to “Candidate and Voter Tools” then “Voter Lookup Search,” and enter your first and last name. If the information is not correct, voters may go to www.voteohio.gov , a secure website where the information can be updated. Voters can also come to our office in the old county courthouse and fill out a paper form, or go to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, or a public library or high school.
We have a wealth of other information on our website as well. Voters can search the absentee page to determine if their application to vote by mail was received, when their ballot was mailed, and when their ballot was received. Voters can also find the hours for early in-person voting, look for their polling location, see election results and find their elected representatives. I encourage all voters to check our website for this valuable information.
In my next column, I will share information about voting early in-person during the early voting period and voting by mail. I look forward to sharing how the important work done here at the Board of Elections makes it possible for every voter to have faith in the election process and that their votes are counted correctly.
The writer, Laura Bruns, is the director of the Miami County Board of Elections. Bruns can be reached at [email protected].
