Tag: Election 2020

RideKC buses will serve many polling places and advance polling locations in Wyandotte County, according to a news release from the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority.

Regular transit service will be available in Wyandotte County. Fares have been suspended because of COVID-19, although RideKC traditionally offers free rides on Election Day.

Voters who ride the bus are encouraged to plan out their routes in advance.

Wyandotte County’s three advance polling sites will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today through Oct. 30 and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31. In addition, one advance voting site, the Election Office at 850 State Ave., will be open from 8 a.m. to noon on Monday, Nov. 2.

The three advance voting sites include:
• Election Office: 850 State Avenue: Take routes 101, 104, 106, 402.
• Joe Amayo-Argentine Community Center: Take 104.
• Eisenhower Rec Center: 2901 N 72nd St.: Take 113.

For more information about RideKC and voting, visit https://ridekc.org/blog/voting-options.

For more information on voting, see https://www.wycokck.org/Election.

Gov. Laura Kelly and The Voter Turnout Project of the Kansas Hispanic and Latino American Affairs Commission (KHLAAC) urge all voters who requested advance ballots by mail to vote with their mailed ballots.

“As a reminder to those who have requested advance ballots—make sure you use the ballot that was mailed to you, rather than going to a polling site and receiving a provisional ballot,” Gov. Laura Kelly said. “If you already requested a ballot to be sent to you, wait for it to arrive, then mail it back, or drop it at your county election office or local ballot drop box.”

Voters who requested an advance by mail ballot but choose to cast their ballot in person will be given a provisional ballot to ensure they only vote once. Provisional ballots are not counted until following the election—during the county canvass.

“Due to the pandemic and increased participation in voting, many voters are trying to understand what voting options they have if they have requested a ballot by mail,” Aude Negrete, executive director of the KHLAAC, said,” If a voter has requested a ballot by mail, they should complete the ballot that was mailed to them and then return it to the election office. If they choose to vote in-person, they will have to cast a provisional ballot that won’t be counted until after the election. Many counties have set up drop boxes that voters may use to return their ballot if they opt to return it in person instead of mailing it back.”

If a voter is unsure as to if they have requested a ballot, they can find that information on the Secretary of State website at https://myvoteinfo.voteks.org/VoterView.

The Latino Voter Turnout project of the Kansas Hispanic and Latino American Affairs Commission (KHLAAC) is a collaboration of with over 20 Kansas Latino agencies to increase voter engagement in the community. More information about KHLAAC’s efforts visit: https://khlaac.ks.gov/voto-latino

In Wyandotte County thousands of advance ballots were mailed to voters, and may be returned by mail; at ballot drop boxes; or at any advance voting sites while they are open; at the Election Office; and on Election Day at any polling place in Wyandotte County. There are two drop boxes at the Election Office at 850 State Ave. The locations of the additional drop boxes include the Bonner Springs City Library, 201 N. Nettleton Ave., Bonner Springs; Edwardsville City Hall, 690 S. 4th St., Edwardsville; Kansas City, Kansas, City Hall, 701 N. 7th; and the West Wyandotte Library, 1737 N. 82nd St., Kansas City, Kansas.

A federal prosecutor will be on duty on Election Day to respond to complaints of possible election fraud or voting rights violations in Kansas, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said recently.

McAllister said he has appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Maag to serve as the District Election Officer for Kansas. Maag will be responsible for overseeing the handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights concerns in consultation with Justice Department officials in Washington.

Maag will be available to the public at 785-295-2858 while the polls are open on Nov. 3.

“I don’t expect any problems during voting,” McAllister said. “However, I want to remind Kansans that there are penalties under federal law for any efforts to influence the outcome of an election through fraud or to improperly prevent another person from exercising the right to vote. The Department of Justice has the authority to monitor polling places or take other measures to protect Kansans’ right to vote in free and fair elections.”

Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them. For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law. Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or illiteracy).

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on Election Day.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, D.C. by phone at 800-253-3931 or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/

However, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities. State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places and may have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.

“Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate,” McAllister said. “It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”