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How To Vote In Iowa In The Final Days Of The 2020 Election

In this Oct. 20, 2020, file photo, Kelly Wingfield, of Urbandale, Iowa, fills out his ballot during early voting for the general election in Adel, Iowa. As it has for more than 170 years, The Associated Press will count the vote and report the results of presidential, congressional and state elections quickly, accurately and without fear or favor on Nov. 3 and beyond.
Charlie Neibergall
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AP
You can vote early in person Monday (Nov. 2) at your county election office. Or you can vote at your polling place on Election Day (Nov. 3), when polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Iowa’s deadlines for requesting an absentee ballot and for voter pre-registration have passed, but there are still opportunities for everyone to register and vote. These are your options in the final days of voting in the 2020 general election.

You haven’t requested an absentee ballot and/or you haven’t registered to vote:

Vote early in person Monday, Nov. 2. Check your county auditor’s website to find your early voting location (most are at the county election office).

Vote in person on Election Day (Nov. 3) from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Look up your polling place before you go. Many voting locations have changed because of the pandemic.

Bring your Iowa ID when voting in person. Click here to see other accepted ID options. You can also register to vote while voting in person. Click here to see what’s required.

If you have a felony conviction and completed your sentence, your voting rights have likely been restored. Find more information here.

You have an absentee ballot, but you haven’t returned it yet:

Recommended: Fill it out, sign and seal the affidavit envelope, and bring the ballot to your county election office by 9:00 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3. This close to Election Day, this is the best way to make sure your absentee ballot gets counted. Some counties have a ballot drop box outside the office.

Monday, Nov. 2, is the deadline for mailing your ballot to your county auditor. It must be scanned by the post office by Nov. 2 and received by noon on Nov. 9 to be counted. Election officials have recommended mailing your ballot before Nov. 2. At this point, it is safer to drop your ballot off at the county election office to make sure your vote is counted.

Vote in person on Election Day. Bring the blank absentee ballot with you and surrender it to a poll worker.

You requested an absentee ballot but it hasn’t arrived, or you lost it:

You can vote in person early or on Election Day. You’ll be asked to sign a declaration that says your ballot was lost or never arrived.

On Election Day, you’ll vote a provisional ballot. It’ll be counted in the week after Election Day as long as the election office doesn’t receive your voted absentee ballot in the mail. This prevents double voting, which is illegal.

You already returned your absentee ballot, and you’re not sure if it was received:

Click here for the state’s absentee ballot tracker. It will show you when your ballot was received by county election officials.

This post was updated Sunday, Nov. 1, at 5:40 p.m.

Katarina Sostaric is IPR's State Government Reporter