Secretary of State Nellie M. Gorbea is reminding Rhode Islanders that the deadline to submit mail ballot applications for the upcoming statewide special referenda election is Tuesday, February 9. Mail ballot applications must be received by election officials by 4 p.m. on February 9, not postmarked.
“If you want to vote from home but haven’t submitted your mail ballot application yet, please drop off your application instead of mailing it to make sure it arrives on time,” Secretary Gorbea urged voters. “You can return your mail ballot application to your local board of canvassers or place it in any of the secure election drop boxes located in every Rhode Island community.”
To ensure that Rhode Islanders can vote safely from home during the pandemic, last month Secretary Gorbea sent all eligible voters a mail ballot application for the special election with a postage-paid return envelope. If you are a registered voter in need of a mail ballot application, visit vote.ri.gov or contact your local board of canvassers. Voters can track the status of their mail ballot application and their mail ballot on Secretary Gorbea’s website.
Rhode Island voters who have difficulty reading or marking their ballot may still vote from home with an accessible mail ballot by checking the appropriate box on their mail ballot application. All polling places will also be equipped with accessible voting equipment.
Voting from home with a mail ballot is one of three safe and secure voting options available to Rhode Islanders for the March 2 special election. Voters may also choose to cast their ballot early in-person at their city or town hall up to 20 days before the election, or voters may choose to cast their ballot at the polls on March 2. Your polling location may have changed from the November election, so be sure to double-check it on vote.ri.gov.
The seven referenda questions for the March 2 special election involve authorizing the state to borrow money through bonds and temporary notes to make capital investments in several different areas. Voters can learn more about each bond question using Secretary Gorbea’s Voter Information Handbook. The Handbook will also be mailed to all voters next week.