PORT ANGELES — Callam County voter turnout in the all-mail Aug. 7 primary election has risen to slightly more than 10 percent.
The Clallam County Auditor’s Office had received by Friday 4,608 of the 45,850 ballots it has issued for the election.
Of those, 743 ballots came in Friday, Clallam County Auditor Patty Rosand said.
“This makes 10.05 percent of ballots now returned,” Rosand said in an email.
“This is about what we expected to have as a return rate at the end of the first week of voting,” she wrote.
“It is a large ballot with lots of races and voters will take their time to study the ballot before voting.”
In Jefferson County, 16.60 percent of registered Jefferson County voters had returned a ballot for the primary election as of Friday, voter registration coordinator Betty Johnson said, with 3,631 ballots returned out of 21,867 issued countywide.
Ballots must be postmarked by Aug. 7; hand-delivered to the Auditor’s Office at the County Courthouse at 223 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles; or placed in a ballot drop-box no later than 8 p.m. that day.
Drop-boxes are outside the courthouse, in the Forks District Court lobby at 502 E. Division St. and at Sequim City Hall at 152 W. Cedar St.
Clallam County has 24 contested races this year, including the U.S. Senate and Congress, the state governor and state legislative seats, county commissioner and several state and local judicial positions.
A proposed sales tax hike is on Sequim ballots, and a proposed bond measure is on Port Angeles ballots.
The general election will be Nov. 6.
Didn’t get a ballot?
Any voter who did not receive a Clallam County primary election ballot should phone the Auditor’s Office at 360-417-2221 or visit the office to pick up a replacement.
Voters also have the option of visiting www.clallam.net/elections, clicking on “My Vote” and printing a replacement ballot.
Free copies of the Peninsula Daily News’ 2012 North Olympic Peninsula Voter Guide for the primary election are available at the PDN office at 305 W. First St. in downtown Port Angeles and online at www.peninsuladailynews.com.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.