Absentee ballot applications are available online at https://www.sos.alabama.gov/alabama-votes/voter/absentee-voting or at AlabamaVotes.gov. Paper copies are available in the Lee County Courthouse or county satellite offices in Auburn and Smiths Station. Voters can call the Absentee Election Office at (334) 737-3490 to request an application and one will be mailed to them. The deadline for applying for an absentee ballot is Thursday, October 29, 2020.
Completed applications for absentee ballots may be delivered in person to the Absentee Election Manager Mr. James Majors or sent through the US Mail to PO Box 1616, Opelika, AL 36803. Only the voter themselves can return their own absentee application; no one can return another person’s application. Those that are mailed in should be sent with one application per envelope.
Even applications from a husband and wife that live in the same household must be returned separately, whether by mail or in person. Failure to do so will result in the application(s) being returned and the process delayed.
The Absentee Election Manager’s Office in the Lee County Courthouse will be open Monday through Friday from now until the election from 8:30am until 4:30pm Central Time. In addition, it will remain open until 6:00pm on all Tuesdays and Thursdays in the month of October.
The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot is close of business Thursday, October 29, and the deadline to postmark or return a ballot in person is close of business Monday, November 2.
The Absentee Office is seeing a steady stream of voters in the Courthouse and wait times can range from 10 minutes to as long as an hour. Those wait times are expected to greatly increase as we get closer to Election Day. You are encouraged to use the US Mail option if at all possible. The office can process 4 or 5 mailed-in absentee requests in the same amount of time it takes to process one absentee voter in person. If you have concerns about mail delivery or counting of absentee ballots, in-person voting at the polls on Election Day may be your most reassuring experience. Absentee ballots do not arrive until about 55 days prior to the election, and they arrived September 9. By that time, the absentee office had already received over a thousand applications. The absentee office is currently experiencing a large number of walk-in voters and is receiving hundreds of mailed applications per day. There are 8-10 assistants working during office hours, as well as nights and weekends to process the mail and handle in-person absentee voting. Your patience is appreciated.
There are several valid reasons for absentee voting:
those that expect to be out of their county of permanent residence on Election Day.
those that have a physical illness or infirmity that make them unable to vote in person.
Those that have a physical illness or infirmity that, coupled with age and/or disability,
make them unable to access their polling place because they cannot stand for any length of time, walk unassisted, see, hear or speak.
Those that have a required workplace shift which includes at least 10 hours that coincide with the 7:00am to 7:00pm polling hours.
Students at educational institutions outside their county of permanent residence.
Members/spouses/dependents of those in the US Armed Forces serving outside their county of permanent residence.
Those appointed as elections officials in polling places other than where they vote.
Those that are caregivers of family members that are confined at home.
Those incarcerated in jail or prison that have not been convicted of a felony involving moral turpitude.
Additionally, the Absentee Election Manager will offer complete absentee services in person at the following three locations on the following Saturdays from 9:00am until 1:00pm Central Time:
Saturday, October 10, 2020 Smiths Station City Hall Annex Probate Office
2336 Lee Road 430, Smiths Station
Saturday, October 17, 2020 Auburn Courthouse Annex Probate Office
1240 Mall Parkway, Auburn
Saturday, October 24, 2020 Lee County Absentee Election Office
Lee County Courthouse, 215 S Ninth St, Opelika
Exercise your right to vote, and thank you for participating in our democracy, especially during this pandemic. Please keep yourself and others as safe as you can.
Sincerely,
Bill English, Probate Judge
James Majors, Absentee Election Manager