DES MOINES, Iowa — In less than three weeks, absentee voters in Iowa must have their ballots sent to their county auditor's office or dropped them off for their vote to be counted.
Here are the six reasons your ballot may be rejected and how you can make that doesn't happen to you.
Ballot isn't signed
An absentee ballot will be rejected if the affidavit envelope is not signed by the voter. It's something that happens right here in Iowa.
In Webster County, 144 ballots were rejected during the June primary. The county auditor said most of those ballots weren't signed.
In Dallas County, 196 ballots were rejected, and 119 of those weren't signed.
Envelope isn't sealed, or it's opened and resealed
Iowa law says a ballot can be rejected if the envelope is open. While the auditor didn't have an exact number, Webster County did reject a few ballots for not being sealed properly.
The Webster County Auditor's Office said a few ballots were rejected because they were opened and taped shut. Iowa law says don't do it.
Make sure you double check your envelope before sealing it.
Ballot isn't postmarked on time
Your absentee ballot will be rejected if it's not sent to your auditor by Nov. 2.
Auditors won't start counting absentee ballots until at least Nov. 2, so be sure you have it in the mail for it to be counted.
If you're not registered in the precinct where the ballot is cast
You must be registered in the precinct where you cast your vote. You can find out if where you're registered by visiting the Iowa Secretary of State's website.
Envelope contains more than one ballot
You can't send in more than one ballot in one envelope, according to Iowa law.
If you vote in-person at the polls
You can only cast one vote during an election, so if you send in an absentee ballot, do not head to the polls.
Click here to access Local 5's Voter Guide or text VOTE to 515-457-1026.