Time to vote ... if you haven't already

Polls will be open Tuesday for voters to cast their ballots in Idaho's primary election.

Carrie Phillips, Kootenai County elections manager, said absentee ballots that were requested before the May 11 deadline will be accepted until 8 p.m. Tuesday.

The elections office mailed out 4,677 absentee ballots for the primary election. As of the end of the day Friday, the office had received back 2,674 completed absentee ballots and 1,097 voters had taken advantage of early in-person voting.

The purpose of primary elections in Idaho is to allow members of a recognized political party to select that party's nominees to go on the general election ballot in November. A voter's party affiliation, or non-affiliation, will determine which ballot he or she receives on election day.

Phillips said in the presidential primary people were able to change their affiliation, but that is not the case in Tuesday's election.

"If you are already affiliated with one of the four recognized parties — Republican, Democrat, Libertarian or Constitution — then you cannot change your affiliation," she said.

Voters can change affiliation after Tuesday's election if desired, but the deadline to change party affiliation before this primary was March 11.

For Tuesday's election, the Democratic Primary is open. That means any voter, affiliated with any party or unaffiliated, may choose to receive a Democratic ballot. The Constitution and Republican primaries are closed, meaning only voters affiliated with each of those parties can vote on those ballots.

All party ballots also include the nonpartisan candidates, judges in this election, and ballot questions — a Consolidate Free Library levy question and a bond question for Kootenai Water District No. 1 — which are also on a separate nonpartisan ballot. The nonpartisan ballot does not include candidates from any party. Any voter, regardless of affiliation, may choose to receive the nonpartisan ballot only.

An unaffiliated voter can still vote in a closed primary by affiliating with a party in the Poll Book at the polls. A voter cannot change their ballot choice after signing the Poll Book.

Registered voters unsure of their affiliation status can find out where they stand by contacting the Kootenai County Elections Office at (208) 446-1030 or by email to kcelections@kcgov.us. Voters can also check their registration and affiliation status by visiting the Idaho Votes website, http://bit.ly/1iIOC9H.

Absentee ballots will be posted on the county elections website beginning with the absentee ballots around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Phillips said. Election day results will be updated every 30 to 60 minutes after the initial posting. Results will be posted at http://www.kcgov.us/elections.

With 70 locations to vote in Kootenai County, voters can find their designated polling place online at http://www.kcgov.us/elections/search. Polls will be open at designated locations from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Voters are required to bring photo identification to their designated polling place. Anyone who cannot provide photo identification will be asked to sign a Personal Identification Affidavit, swearing to his or her identity under penalty of perjury.