SOUTHAMPTON — Southampton Town Clerk Luci Dalton provided information about how the town’s voters can proceed ahead of the state’s Presidential primary on March 5.
According to Dalton, the polls at the town clerk’s office will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on March 5 for Southampton voters.
Additionally, the town clerk’s office, which is located at 210 College Hwy., is also hosting multiple early in-person voting opportunities for the March 5 primary.
Voters can participate in early in-person voting on Feb. 24, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Feb. 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Feb. 26, Feb. 28 and Feb. 29 during regular business hours from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Dalton added that anyone who requested a mail-in ballot should have received them this past weekend or the beginning of this week.
The ballot come with a packet that includes voter instructions, a yellow envelope, a white envelope and the ballot itself. Dalton said voters participating in the mail-in format must place their ballot in the yellow envelope and then put the yellow envelope in the white envelope before returning it to the town clerk’s office. The yellow envelope must also be signed by the voter.
According to Dalton, there are over 925 mail-in ballots that have been sent to Southampton residents.
Anyone voting by mail must return their ballots by mailing them to the town clerk’s office or by placing them in the town clerk’s box outside of Town Hall.
Voters have until the polls close on March 5 to return their mail-in ballots, but Dalton encourages everyone to return them before that.
“We’re requesting that, if you receive a vote-by-mail ballot, to get them in as soon as possible,” said Dalton, who added that people can track when their ballot was returned to the town clerk’s office by visiting the secretary of the commonwealth’s office website, sec.state.ma.us/WhereDoIVoteMA.
Dalton also said that if voters are receiving a letter from the town clerk’s office that says they are “unenrolled,” it does not mean they are off the voters’ list; it just means they are unaffiliated with a political party.
Anyone who has questions about this information can call the town clerk’s office at 413-527-8392.
Dalton said that people have until Feb. 27 to request mail-in applications and until Feb. 24 to register to vote.
Aside from the presidential primary, Dalton said that nomination papers are also available at the town clerk’s office for the local election on May 21 for various elected seats, which can be found on the Southampton wesbite. There are openings on the Selectboard, Finance Committee, Zoning Board of Appeals, the Conservation Commission and more.