Aug 23

Aug 23 Step By Step Through The Election Of Our Times

Planning With 2020 Prince George’s County Board of Elections

By Kia Lisby

With the 2020 election just over two months away, it is important for voters to be aware of the logistics in light of this year’s many changes transpiring due to COVID-19.

COVID has made covering Election 2020 a very different process and the Prince George’s County Board of Elections is operating very differently.

“The entire state of Maryland has vote by mail and we did it in the primary election,” BOE Deputy Administrator Daneen Banks says. For the general election, the state BOE will be mailing out vote by mail ballot applications to every registered voter this week. Every registered voter that would like to vote by mail needs to complete that application no later than Oct. 20 for us to get the ballots out to the voters.”

“We have more applications now for mail-in ballots than we did at this time for the 2016 general election,” she says.

Banks says voters can mail or “drop them off at our dropbox locations. Eleven of those drop box locations will be at the early voting sites and the BOE office (1100 Mercantile Lane, Suite 115A, Largo, MD). There will be additional drop boxes located around the county. Boxes will be bolted in and video-camera monitored. There will be 24-hour security at each location as well.

For Prince George’s County residents, the Board of Elections offers helpful information and resources to learn more about the voting process within the state for this year.

Prince George's County Board of Elections (BOE) promotes voter education, administers an efficient voting process, maintains an accurate voter registration database, and ensures that elected officials are elected in accordance with Federal, State, and County election laws. The BOE is responsible for the supervision of elections, voter registration and record-keeping, and the administration of election laws in Prince George's County, in accordance with Article 33 of the Annotated Code of Maryland. The Board and the Election Administrator seek to provide voter registration to every County citizen who wants it.

Marylanders are encouraged to vote by mail for the 2020 election ballots must be postmarked by or before Nov. 3 2020). To vote, you must be registered. The deadline to register or update voter registration information is Oct 13. There also is an alternative option of completing these tasks which is in-person during early voting or on election day.

Mail-in ballots can also be requested now via phone or online or in-person at the Mercantile Lane office. Voters can complete and return forms online using Maryland driver’s license or an MVA-issued ID card; fill in the mail-in ballot application for 2020 elections; or pick up a ballot at the Prince George’s County Board of Elections Office located at 1100 Mercantile Lane, Suite 115A, Largo, MD, 20774 to complete, and turn in. An application for a mail-in ballot request will automatically be mailed to your home during the week of August 24. No ballots will be mailed without a request. Ballots will not go out to voters automatically.

All ballot applications must be returned to the Prince George’s County Board of Elections Office no later than 4:30 pm on Oct 20.

The Deputy Administrator says “[Ballots placed in] secured drop box locations will be sent to the Board of Elections for processing.”

For early voters voting in person, there will be 11 voting sites in Prince George’s County from Oct 26 – Nov 2.

People should start working on getting their votes done immediately so that the ballots can be processed as soon as possible. Waiting until election day may result in unforeseen circumstances that can transpire which may affect the vote count. With COVID-19 still prevalent, safety is a must for residents and judges. To prevent possible sickness, mail-in ballots are more convenient and safer.

“The earlier you begin, the quicker we can get you your ballot,” Banks says. “You can do it today: go online or come by the office or call an request one and we will mail it now.. We have encouraged people to do this for weeks now.”

To attend the emergency board meeting for Prince George’s County on Aug 26 at 5:30 pm, visit https://www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/559/Board-of-Elections for further instructions.