Juneau’s COVID election: 23 percent have cast ballots

Voters in Juneau have until Oct. 6 to return ballots for the city’s mail-in municipal election.

The city announced that as of Thursday, 23% of voters had already voted, compared to a final turnout of 31.4% in 2019 and 35.5% in 2018.

The city mailed ballots to 27,467 registered Juneau voters on Sept. 15. Juneau has a population that is about 32,000, and roughly 9,060 of those are children, ineligible to vote.

How so many ballots get mailed out is one of the mysteries of mail-in elections and what subjects mail-in elections to fraud, according to critics. Numerous residents report getting multiple ballots in the mail for people who no longer live at that address. There are no laws in Juneau against ballot harvesting.

The Juneau Assembly decided this summer to adopt mail-in balloting for this election due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As of Thursday, Oct. 1, the city’s election officials had received 6,425 returned ballots, with most of the Juneau ballots being received in Anchorage the Anchorage Election Center:

• Municipality of Anchorage Election Center (received by mail): 2,679 ballots
• City Hall Vote Center: 627 ballots
• Mendenhall Valley Library Vote Center: 1,013 ballots
• Douglas Library/Fire Hall Ballot Drop Box: 968 ballots
• Statter Harbor Boat Launch parking lot Ballot Drop Box: 1,108 ballots
• City Clerk’s Office (prior to the vote centers being opened and e-ballots): 30 ballots

Regular Polling Place locations will not be open on Election Day, Tuesday, Oct. 6. For this By-Mail election, you have three options for voting:

1. Mail your ballot through the U.S. Postal Service with a 55 cent or Forever stamp; or ​
2. Place your ballot in a Secure Ballot Drop Box at the Douglas Library or the Statter Harbor boat launch parking lot until 8 p.m. on Oct. 6; no stamp required; or
3. Take your ballot to a Juneau Vote Center at City Hall or the Mendenhall Valley Public Library; no stamp required. If you need to obtain a ballot at the vote center, please bring ID, like a State of Alaska voter card, an Alaska driver’s license or state ID card, a military ID card, a passport, a hunting or fishing license, or other current or valid photo identification.

Vote Center Hours & Locations:

• City Hall – Assembly Chambers (155 S. Seward St.)
  • Weekdays, Sept. 21 – Oct. 5 at 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
  • Election Day, Oct. 6 at 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.
• Mendenhall Valley Public Library (3025 Dimond Park Loop)
  • Weekdays, Sept. 21 – Oct. 5 at 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
  • Election Day, Oct. 6 at 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Unofficial election results will not be available on Election Night. Preliminary unofficial results will be available the evening of Friday, Oct. 9, on the CBJ Elections webpage.

For more information or voter assistance, read these CBJ Election FAQs, email [email protected], or contact CBJ Election Call Center at 364-7401 Mon-Fri 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.