Park County Braces for Busy Election Day on Tuesday Nov. 8th
Written by Caleb Nelson on November 2, 2022
Following August’s record-breaking Primary Election, Park County officials predict strong voter turnout for next week’s General Election as well.
Early and absentee voting was high in the primary and has been even higher in the run-up to the General Election. With a week to go before the Tuesday, Nov. 8 election, “3,700 ballots have already been cast,” the Elections Office says. That’s roughly 900 ballots more than had been cast at the same point in the county’s Primary Election, which wound up with the best voter turnout on record for a primary.
“All signs point to another busy Election Day — which is exactly what we like to see,” says Park County Clerk Colleen Renner. “I encourage residents to exercise their right to vote.”
Ahead of Election Day, residents can look up their polling place and review sample ballots on the county’s elections website by clicking here. The elections site includes newly filed campaign finance reports, which show candidates and committees have spent roughly “$30,000 on county, municipal, school and college board campaigns since August.”
Voters should keep in mind that there have been three changes since ballots were printed: Park County School District 6 board candidate Samantha Gbadamosi and Park County School District 1 board candidate Aida Polson have withdrawn from their races and Crown Hill Cemetery District board candidate Jerry Clark recently passed away.
Renner and her elections staff have taken steps to alleviate the lines that voters experienced at some polling locations in August by adding more election judges, shuffling polling place layouts, and improving signage. However, with thousands of people heading to the polls on Tuesday, Renner cautioned that voters may still have to do some waiting at the busier polling sites.
Election Day voting will take place at the Cody Auditorium, the Cody Recreation Center, the Park County Fairgrounds in Powell, the South Fork Fire Hall, the Wapiti school, the Meeteetse Senior Center, the Mountain View Clubhouse, the Clark Pioneer Recreation Center and the Garland Community Church.
Residents continue to have the option of voting early at the Park County Courthouse from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays through Monday, Nov. 7. Absentee ballots also remain available.
Residents can register to vote or update their registration while they vote. Proper identification – such as a driver’s license, state ID card, military ID card, or U.S. passport – is required. Under a new law, voters who are already registered also need to show an acceptable ID when voting in person.
Unofficial results from the general election will be posted to the county website as they are tabulated Tuesday night. Those results are due to the Wyoming Secretary of State’s Office by 10:30 p.m.
