Well folks, after a whirlwind lead-up, Election Day is over. So, what now? Here are a few things you should know:

1. We are still processing ballots! To date, we have received more than 1 million ballots out of an issued 1.28 million. That’s more than an 80 percent turnout, so great job King County voters!

2. You can track your ballot with our Ballot Tracker. Plug in your information to see if we have received and counted your ballot.

3. If you forgot to sign your ballot envelope or we challenge your signature, we will notify you to provide us with an updated signature and your vote will be counted. You have until November 28^th to do this, but it would be great if you could get back to us as soon as possible.

4. We are regularly updating election results here. However, our results won’t be official until we certify the election on November 29. We process every eligible ballot for every race until we share final results on November 29.

5. Questions about your ballot or the election? Our phone bank is open. Give us a call at 206-296-VOTE (8683).

This election has seen a lot of public discourse about write-in candidates. But before you scribble in your candidate of choice, here are four things you should know:

1. We count the total number of write-in votes for each office in an election. However, we don’t count how many votes each write-in candidate receives unless one of two things happens: a) For single-candidate races: the total number of write-in votes are more than the votes cast for the single printed candidate on the ballot for the same position or b) For multi-candidate races: the total number of write-in votes is more than the difference between the top candidates. In that case, we tabulate how many votes each write-in candidate receives for that office.

2. While it is a voter’s right to write in a candidate of their choice, we recommend that you pick a real person and not a fictional character such as Mickey Mouse. Processing ballots with write-ins for imaginary candidates takes our staff extra time and costs money.

3. Write-in candidates in King County have won in smaller races before. A write-in candidate unseated the incumbent during the 2011 mayor’s race in the City of Pacific.

4. There are two kinds of write-in candidates: undeclared and declared. A declared candidate files as a write-in but their name will not appear on the ballot. However, every variation of their name that is written in will be counted as a vote. So if voters write in John Smith or Jon Smyth, both spellings would count as a vote. An undeclared candidate is one that has not filed and is promoting their candidacy on their own. Their name, however, must be written as the exact spelling. No variations of their name will be counted as a vote.

If you have any questions about write-in candidates, give us a call at 206-296-VOTE.

We’ve been getting some questions about why we color code our envelopes. Are the blue envelopes for Democratic voters? Are the red ones for Republican voters? What’s up with the green envelopes? Let us explain.

Our envelope colors have nothing to do with politics (Washington voters don’t register with a party, anyway) but actually have to do with helping us and the U.S. Postal Service distinguish inbound and outbound ballots. All of the ballots we send to voters are mailed in our signature blue envelopes. The envelope you use to return your ballot is red. This helps our office and the Postal Service distinguish your red envelope as a returned ballot. And finally, the green envelopes are used by overseas and service voters to return their ballots.

That’s it! If you have any questions give us a call at 206-296-VOTE (8683).

One thing many people don’t realize is that their voting record is public information. That means anyone can request access to your voting history. However, the candidates or measures you voted for are not public information. In fact, not even we know how you voted since your identity, once we have verified your signature, is separated from your ballot. Nor do we ever provide your phone number or email address. And, particularly during high-profile elections, campaigns are regularly checking whether or not you’ve returned your ballot. They can then use that information to focus their “get out the vote” efforts on voters who have yet to return their ballot.

So what does this mean? While we can’t promise anything, it definitely stands to reason that once you’ve returned your ballot you may get fewer calls and mailers. Additionally, the more ballots we receive early, the more ballots we can report on election night. Therefore you have multiple incentives to get your ballot in early.

The good news is that many of you already have – our returns so far are 30% higher than what we projected – so keep it up!

King County residents not currently registered in Washington State still have until October 31st to come by in person and complete their voter registration.

Feeling crunched for time? We can help!

The King County Elections Office has extended office hours and is operating:

• Thursday, October 27, 8:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.
• Friday, October 28, 8:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.
• Saturday, October 29, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
• Monday, October 31, 8:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.

The Voter Registration Annex in downtown Seattle is open Monday – Friday, October 24 – 31, from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Procrastinators beware: although the King County Elections Office will be open until 6 p.m. on Monday October 31, we expect to have lines. Don’t wait until the last minute to get registered to vote!

Ballot drop boxes are now open for the November 8 General Election. Once you vote, return your ballot to any one of the 43 drop boxes throughout King County. No stamp is necessary.

Did you know that more than 91% of County residents live within three miles of a ballot drop box?  Find the one nearest you on our ballot drop box map.  Drop boxes are open 24 hours a day and will close at 8 p.m. on Election Day.

You can also mail your ballot through the Postal Service. You only need one stamp but ballots must be postmarked by November 8.

Ballots will be mailed on October 19^th and the deadline to return your ballot is 8 p.m. on Election Day, November 8^th.  Whether you’ll be travelling for business or kicking off a sun-filled vacation during this time, no need to worry!  You have a couple of options to get your ballot and vote:

1. Give us a call at 206-296-VOTE (8683) and we can mail your ballot to anywhere in the world.

2. You can access your ballot through our Online Ballot Marking Program. Simply mark, review and print your ballot for return to King County Elections. Overseas and service voters can also permanently request to receive their ballot using this program.

Bon voyage!