Primary Election: At least 153,000 ballots have already been returned in Pima County

CATALINA FOOTHILLS, Ariz. (KGUN) — There are a lot of locations in Pima County where voters can cast their ballot if they haven’t already voted early. A few locations in the Foothills include St. Thomas Catholic Church on Sunrise and Valley View and the Duesenberry River Library on River and Craycroft.

Clean Elections said all registered voters including independent and unaffiliated voters can vote in this primary.

“It’s absolutely essential, I think to show that there’s an engaged electorate,” Foothills resident John Birdsaol said.

As of yesterday, the Pima County Recorders Office said over 153 thousand ballots have been returned for verification out of the over 341 thousand ballots they sent out. They said that’s a little over 44 percent of the ballots they sent out.

“It’s just more convenient in the comfort of my own home, and just slip it in the mail box,” Heather Chapman, a woman living in the Foothills, said.

The Pima County Recorder’s Office also said early ballots can still be dropped off at any vote center at their drop off ballot box on election day.

Chapman said it’s important to vote in every race and research them before casting a ballot.

“Each one has an important reason for running, but generally if there’s only one person running for the office, I just generally mark them, and then I move on to the next one that has multiple people who are running for the same seat,” she said.

Clean Elections said independent voters can choose a Democrat, Republican or local non partisan ballot if they are available.

“I tend to vote based on what they’re running on, not necessarily whether they’re Democrat, or Republican, or independent. I tend to just figure out what their base is on and then vote in that direction,” Chapman said.

Clean Elections said the polls are open from 6 A.M. to 7 P.M. and voters need an I.D. like a valid Arizona driver’s license, but they can also use two documents with their name and address that match their voting information like a utility bill or bank statement.

“Here in Arizona where margins are close, passions are high, I feel like it’s really important,” Birdsaol said about the importance of voting.