The primary election is an election held to nominate candidates for the general election.

Iowa has two political parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. At the primary election, there is a Democratic ballot and a Republican ballot. Candidates from each party run against candidates from the same party. The winners from each party will have their names placed on the general election ballot.

Iowa’s primary election is a “closed primary” which means that voters must declare a party affiliation to participate. Voters may change their political party affiliation at the polling place on Election Day.

Hours the Polls are Open

The polls will open at 7:00 a.m. and close at 9:00 p.m. in all precincts within Marshall County. The purpose of this Primary Election is to nominate candidates for the Republican and Democratic Parties to be placed on the November 2, 2010 General Election.

Find Your Precinct and Sample Ballot

Marshalltown

Voter Registration Deadline

Saturday, May 29th is the final day to pre-register to vote in the June 8th, 2010 Primary Election. The office of the county auditor will be open until 5:00 p.m. on that date for eligible electors who wish to register in person. Completed voter registrations may be mailed to the County Auditor, and must be received by the above deadline in order to be valid for this election.

Voters who are currently registered need not re-register unless they have changed residences from one county to another. A voter who has changed addresses within the same county as the voter is currently registered may change his/her voter registration address anytime before the election or at the voter's new polling site on Election Day.

Registering to vote is a legal requirement to be eligible to vote in Iowa. To be eligible to register to vote, you must:

• be at least 17 1/2 years of age (you must be at least 18 years of age to vote)
• be a United States citizen
• be an Iowa resident
• not have been convicted of a felony (or, if you have been convicted of a felony, have had your voting rights restored)
• not have been judged mentally incompetent by a court
• give up your right to vote in any other place.

Iowa law now allows eligible persons to register and vote at the polls on Election Day. An Election Day registrant must provide acceptable proof of identity and current residence in the precinct. Click on the link below to see the Election Day Registration Guide produced by the Iowa Secretary of State.

Iowa Election Day Registration Guide

http://www.sos.state.ia.us/pdfs/elections/EDRbrochure.pdf

Voter Registration Application - English

http://www.sos.state.ia.us/pdfs/elections/voteapp.pdf

How to Get an Absentee Ballot

Eligible and registered voters wishing to cast absentee ballots may vote in person at the office of the county auditor, or may make written requests for absentee ballots to be mailed to them.

Voting by absentee ballot in Auditor’s Office.

A registered voter may cast an absentee ballot in the Courthouse beginning approximately April 29th at 1 E. Main St., Marshalltown, IA on the 2nd floor, SE Corner during regular business hours prior to Election Day.

Voters requesting absentee ballots by mail may submit a request at anytime before an election but must do so by 5 p.m. the Friday before the election. Requests arriving by mail after 5 p.m. on the Friday before the election cannot be honored.

Voting absentee ballot by mail. Written requests for absentee ballots can be made by using the official form Absentee Ballot Request Form.

In lieu of the official form, absentee ballot requests must be on paper no smaller than 3x5 inches and include the following information:

• The name of the voter,
• The voter's address,
• The address to which the ballot should be sent (if different from the voter's address),
• The voter's date of birth,
• The date and/or name of the election for which the voter is requesting a ballot, and
• The voter's signature.

Mail Absentee Ballot Requests to:

No one can request a ballot for another person.

Official Absentee Ballot Application

http://www.sos.state.ia.us/PDFS/AbsenteeBallotApp.pdf

Ways to Return Voted Absentee Ballots

Personal delivery

Iowa's laws have changed. The voter may personally deliver a voted absentee ballot to the county auditor's office or may designate any other person to do so. If the voter chooses to designate another person to deliver the voted absentee ballot, the voter may require the other person to fill out a receipt and give it to the voter, which the voter should keep. Iowa law requires the other person to deliver the voted absentee ballot to the county auditor's office by the time the polls close on election night or no later than 72 hours after picking up the ballot from the voter, whichever occurs first.

A voted absentee ballot may be delivered in-person to the county auditor's office during regular business hours. The County Auditor's office will also be open on Saturday, May 29th and Saturday, June 5th for absentee voting. The County Auditor's office will be closed on Monday, May 31st, 2010 in observance of Memorial Day.

In order to be considered on time to be counted for the June 8, 2010 Primary Election, a voted absentee ballot that is personally delivered must be physically received in the county auditor's office by the time the polls close at 9:00 p.m. on election night.

A voted absentee ballot cannot be delivered to a polling place on Election Day; it will not be counted. However, a voter may surrender an absentee ballot to the precinct election officials at the polling site on Election Day, and the voter will be allowed to vote at the polls.

Office Hours during this Election Cycle

Business hours are 8:00 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Additional hours that the office will be open are as follows:

• Saturday, May 29th from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
• Friday, June 4th from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
• Saturday, June 5th from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.

Special Precinct Board

The Special Precinct Board will open and count absentee ballots on Election Day. However, the results from the absentee ballots will not be released until shortly after the polls close at 9:00 p.m.

Public Test of Voting Equipment

The public test of the county voting system will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 25th, 2010 in the Courthouse at 1 E. Main St., Marshalltown, IA 50158.

Election Night Results

The polls close at 9:00 p.m. and unofficial election night results will be available on this website. The county auditor's office in the courthouse will be open until all precincts have reported. Members of the public are welcome to be present, or to check up-to-date totals on this website.

Remember that election night results are unofficial. They include absentee ballots and results from the precincts, but do not include results from provisional ballots that are subsequently determined to have been valid. They also do not include any valid voted absentee ballots that were postmarked prior to Election Day and that are received by Monday, June 14th.

View election results

Canvass of Election

The Marshall County board of supervisors will meet in regular session at 10 a.m. on Monday, June 14th to canvass the results of June 8th Primary Election. At this meeting the board will canvass the tally lists and prepare official abstracts of the election results. The canvass will include election night results, as well as any provisional ballots and late-absentee ballots that are determined to be valid and on time. The meeting is open to the public.

Voting System

Voters in Marshall County will use special paper ballots that will be counted at each precinct with the use of precinct-count optical-scan machines. Absentee ballots will be counted with the use of a high-speed optical-scan machine. In addition, for any voter who needs assistance in marking the ballot, a ballot-marking machine will be available in each precinct in the county. It will also be available for demonstrations and for absentee voting at the county auditor's office. All election equipment and related software has been tested and certified for use in the State of Iowa.

• M100 Precinct Tabulator
• AutoMARK Ballot Marking Device

Rotation of Names on Ballots

Pursuant to Iowa law, candidates' names will be rotated; however, rotation of names only applies if there are more candidates listed on the ballot than the number of positions to be filled for that office. Ballots in the first precinct in which a specific office is listed on the ballot will show the candidates' names in alphabetical order by last name. The candidates' names will be rotated in each subsequent precinct by moving the first name to the end.

Poll watchers

Poll watchers may represent:

• Candidates whose names appear on the ballot,
  • Must show written permission from candidate.
  • Candidate must have filed a list of pollwatchers with County Auditor.
• Political parties and organizations, and
  • Must show credentials permission from political party.
  • Political party must have filed a list of pollwatchers with County Auditor.
• In all elections other than primary and general elections, groups opposing or supporting approval of questions on the ballot at an election.
  • A person who wants to be a poll watcher must file notice of intent to do so with County Auditor.

• Poll Watcher Information
• Poll Watcher Guide

Ethics and Campaign Disclosure

A candidate or a person who advocates for or against a candidate or a ballot issue may be subject to requirements and restrictions of Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure laws. Campaign finance disclosure forms, brochures, and other information are available at www.state.ia.us/ethics:

Yard Signs

Campaign signs may be placed with the permission of the property owner on private property. Campaign signs can not be placed in the public right of way which is described in general as the area between the sidewalk and the curb in a city and as the area between the shoulder and the fence line in rural areas. Yard signs may not be place on public or corporate property.

Voter Registration Information

Iowa law states that voter registration information is a public record. However, the use of that information is restricted to bona fide political purposes or to a bona fide official governmental purpose. Use for commercial purposes is prohibited by law.

Persons advocating for or against a candidate or public measure on the ballot may request lists of registered voters from the county auditor's office in a variety of customized formats. For further information, stop by the county auditor's office in the courthouse or call (641) 754-6302.

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