Citizen voters are reminded that the polls are open from 8 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 5 and absentee ballots must be returned to the elections department by 8:00 p.m. on election day.
COEUR d’ALENE, Idaho — Early voting has officially closed for the Idaho 2024 General Election. The Kootenai County Elections Department handled a record high number of early voters with 19,615 ballots cast from October 15 through November 1, and it processed 1,384 new applications for registered voters.
By the end of business on November 1, the elections department had received 20,820 completed absentee ballots. This is the second highest number of returned absentee ballots; only the November 2020 election had higher absentee ballots due to voter preferences during Covid-19.
Kootenai County Clerk Jennifer Locke confirms that the county now has 113,925 registered voters. This figure is 3,873 higher than the registered voter numbers posted by the Idaho Secretary of State on September 27, a 3.5 percent increase. Based on the numbers provided by Locke, 40,435 ballots have been cast in Kootenai County which is a 35.5 percent voter turnout before election day.
“Voters must now cast their ballot by going to their polling location on Tuesday, November 5,” Locke reminds voters. “Early voting has closed and there is no early voting on Monday, November 4.”
“Absentee ballots must be returned to our office by 8:00 p.m. on November 5,” continued Locke. “Absentee ballots cannot be accepted at polling locations.”
The elections department is located at 1808 N. Third Street in Coeur d’Alene, and there is a secure drop box attached to the building where absentee ballots can be deposited. Idaho election law requires that absentee ballots be received by 8:00 p.m. on election day to be valid and counted. According to the Idaho Secretary of State ballot tracking, 24,506 absentee ballots were requested in Kootenai County, making the current return rate 85 percent.
Polls will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 5. Voters can find their polling location at VoteIdaho.gov or on the county website.
