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WORLAND — Voters across Wyoming will be headed to the polls Tuesday to cast ballots for municipal, county, state and federal races.

Washakie County Clerk Mary Grace Strauch says traditionally the primary election for a presidential election year has a smaller voter turnout than the general election. In 2012, Washakie County had a 49 percent voter turnout in the primary but 94 percent in the general election.

Voting

This year there are 3,494 registered voters in the county as of Friday, 2,787 Republicans, 441 Democrats, 15 Libertarians, three Constitutionalists and 248 unaffiliated. Strauch said she has had 253 absentee ballots go out of the office with 189 returned as of Thursday afternoon.

Voters can still register at the polls on Tuesday. To register, voters need a photo identification, which can include a Wyoming driver license or United States passport. A full list of identifications that are acceptable can be found on the county website, Washakiecounty.net under the voting link.

Persons eligible to vote must be United States citizens, residents of Wyoming, 18 years of age or older on election day, not declared to be mentally incompetent by a court and not convicted of a felony (unless you were pardoned or have had your rights restored).

Wyoming Secretary of State Ed Murray said, “Voting is one of the most important rights and responsibilities we have as citizens. I encourage people across Wyoming to get out and vote now at their County Clerk’s Office or on Election Day, Aug. 16, at the polls. There are some very competitive races this primary election, from Wyoming’s 99 municipalities to the race for U.S Representative. The primary may decide the winner of many races across the state. As I travel across Wyoming, I talk to voters who wonder how they can learn more about the candidates. I suggest visiting candidates’ web sites or social media, reading locally published voter guides, tuning into local news, or reaching out to the candidates directly themselves.”

The public may also find additional information on state-level candidates, excluding those running for federal office, as well as their candidate committees, and political action committees, by viewing their campaign finance reports on file with the Secretary of State’s Office. Pre-primary campaign finance reports must be filled by 11:59 p.m. this evening, Tuesday, August 9th – seven days before the primary election. Those same reports may be accessed here: https://www.wycampaignfinance.gov/.

Wyoming law requires that employees be given one hour off of work to vote on Election Day. The law stipulates that the hour off may not be a meal hour and may be selected at the employer’s discretion.

All polling places and vote centers across Wyoming will be open on election day between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. To find a polling place, visit: http://soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/PollPlace/.

In Washakie County, polling places are at the Ten Sleep Senior Center and in Worland at the Worland Community Center Complex.

Candidates

The primary election is the opportunity for party voters to select their nominees for partisan races — U.S. House, state legislative races and county commissioner. Each party will have one nominee per race advance.

In nonpartisan races, such as mayor and council, candidates are narrowed to “double the number of seats open,” according to Strauch. For mayor, the list of five candidates will be narrowed to two. There is currently only one contested race in city council, for the two-year seat in Ward 3, but with two candidates on the ballot, it is likely both will advance.

For the unopposed candidates, write-in candidates can accept a nominee if they receive at least three votes.

In Worland, voters in each ward cast votes for only that ward race.