A new state law effective November 1 changed the dates and times state voters have come to expect for in-person “early” absentee voting across Oklahoma.
“Starting this November, early voting days in Oklahoma have changed from Friday/Monday to Thursday/Friday,” explained State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax. “As a result, Thursday, Nov. 7 is the first day for in-person ‘early’ absentee voting in counties with elections on Nov. 12. The hours for early voting remain 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Early voting on Monday is discontinued,” Ziriax said.
These changes are occurring due to the 2013 passage by the Oklahoma Legislature of Senate Bill 869, which was signed into law last May.
In addition, Saturdays will continue to be early voting days for all state and federal elections. Because the Nov. 12, 2013, election is not a federal or state election, but rather a special election, no Saturday early voting will occur this month. However, whenever it’s available, the hours for Saturday early voting at County Election Board offices statewide will change to 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (previously, Saturday early voting began and ended one hour earlier). During federal and state elections, when voter turnout is often the heaviest, the Saturday early voting option provides voters with a third opportunity to vote early.
“These changes will help County Election Board officials to place their focus entirely on Election Day preparations, instead of conducting early voting during the day immediately preceding an election,” the state election board secretary explained.
For more information about absentee voting in Oklahoma, as well as other election-related information, visit the State Election Board website at: http://elections.ok.gov.
