Voting and Election Reminders
Early Voting in Brown County: October 12 - November 7. Times and location can be found on the County Clerk’s website.
Election Day: November 8, 6 am to 6 pm. Polling locations and more information can be found on the County Clerk’s website.
Apply for Mail in Absentee ballot by October 27th - if you meet one of the criteria, e.g., over age 65 & more. Learn more on the state election website.
Learn about the candidates: Use www.Vote411.org to view candidates’ answers (in their own words) to questions provided by LWVBC. Click “What’s on my Ballot,” enter your address, and see what candidates have to say.
Videos of Candidate forumscan be accessed via the League website:www.lwvbrowncounty.org. We could only hold candidate forums for races with at least two candidates, and where at least two candidates agreed to participate. All candidates were invited for the forums below.
General Q & A
Q: Should I vote a straight party ticket?
A: No. At least not unless you've researched every candidate, because:
- It’s important to know where each candidate stands on issues you care about. Candidates may say they represent a certain party, but it does NOT mean they align with the party positions. It’s good to know whether the issues important to you are also important to the candidate.
- A straight party vote will not vote for everything on the ballot!
- School board is non-partisan. A straight party vote will not cast a vote for a single school board member, and there are three positions for school board on the ballot.
- The BCSD school referendum is a separate question. A straight party vote will not support or oppose its passage.
- Judicial Retentions are separate questions. A straight party vote will not support or oppose retention of judges.
- Nashville Town Council candidates are all Independent. If you live inside town limits, you can vote for 3 of the 5 candidates for Town Council. A straight party vote will not cast a vote for ANY of the candidates.
- There are candidates from three parties as well as write-in candidates for some of the races on the ballot. Straight party votes miss opportunities to vote for specific candidates.
Q: Do I need a Photo IDwhen I vote in person (Early or on Election Day?)
A: YES. You must take a government issued IDsuch as driver’s license, passport, military ID or other.
Q: Do I need an excuse to go vote Early in Personfrom Oct. 12 to Nov. 7?
A: NO. Anyone eligible to vote can vote Early in Person. In Brown County, it's in the Salmon Room, second floor, in the County Government building. Days and times are posted on the Brown County Clerk website: https://www.browncounty-in.gov/268/Elections orwww.IndianaVoters.com
Q:What method do we use in Brown County to Vote?
A: Brown County votes on Paper Ballots. The voter must fill in the oval by each selected candidate (or Yes/No) choice on the ballot. Do not use a magic marker because it bleeds through the ballot. Black ink is best.
- If you make a mistake, simply ask a poll worker for a new ballot.
- Check your ballot to make sure you marked everything before you return it to the scanner to be tallied (or to a poll worker during early in person voting)
Q. What if I need assistance or have questions on the ballot?
A. At the Poll while you are voting, ask a poll worker. The two Election Judges (one Judge from both the Republican and Democrat Party) will help you if you ask for assistance.
Q. Where do I Vote Election Day? Where can I see a sample ballot?
A. Visit the Brown County Clerk's website: https://www.browncounty-in.gov/268/Elections
Hamblen 1 Hamblen 2 Hamblen 3
Jackson 1 Jackson 2 Jackson 3 Jackson 4
Van Buren 1 Washington 1 Washington 2 Washington 3
Q. Can I voteAbsentee by Mail?
A. If you meet one of the criteria to get a Mail in Absentee Ballot andapply by the deadline of October 27. Criteria to qualify include age 65 or older, will be out of town, can't get to the polls. Apply online atIndianaVoters.Com, or at the Brown County Clerk's office. Be sure a completed ballot is returned and received by the County by 6 pm election day. Note: postmark does not count for on-time return of ballot.
Q. What if I have a vision problem or other issuethat prevents me from voting with a paper ballot?
A. Every polling precinct has a "Freedom Vote" machine with assistive devicessuch as large print, audio to read the ballot, and more. Anyone can ask to use this assistive device if desired. There is an "electronic pencil" that marks the ballot for the voter, then prints out a paper ballot with the voter choices. The paper ballot will then be placed in the optical scanning device to be tallied along with all other ballots.
Q. What if something happens on Election Day ,like I forgot my ID? Or they don't find my name in the poll book? Or my signature didn't match the one in the poll book? Or...???
A. You should be offered a Provisional Ballot. A provisional ballot means your vote may or may not be counted. To make it count:
- Contact the Brown County Clerk's office right away (812-988-5510) to see what the problem is and what information you need to submit to "cure" your ballot so it will count.
- Helpful hints:
- First time voters need to bring to the polls proof of residence in order to vote.
- You may have up to noon 10 days after the election to submit documents to the Clerk’s office to cure your ballot so it will count. Contact the Clerk’s office for details.
- If you go to the wrong polling place on Election Eay, your ballot won't count, so be sure to know where YOUR polling place is.