Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 | 3:50 p.m.
Nearly 14,000 Nevada voters must verify their identity with election officials to cure the signature on their mail-in ballots or their votes won’t count in what was expected to be a close presidential race, according to the secretary of state.
The deadline for voters to cure their ballots is 5 p.m. Nov. 12, officials said. Ballots can be cured here.
Ballots need to be cured if the signature on file with the elections department doesn’t match, or if the voter failed to sign their mail ballot.
When there is a signature issue, the Clark County Election Department notifies voters by telephone, email and U.S. mail. The phone call from Clark County will come from 702-455-8683, officials said.
Officials urge voters to check if their ballot was accepted by using the state’s online tool. Clark County residents can also check the status of their ballot here.
“It’s exciting that so many people are participating in the democratic process, and for many voters in Nevada that means voting by mail,” Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar said. “We are a battleground state and races could be close up and down the ballot — every eligible Nevada voter deserves to have their vote counted and voice heard, and signature verification is an important security check in the voting process.”
The total number of ballots — 13,906 — needing curing include 6,383 from registered nonpartisan or other voters, 4,026 from Democrats and 3,497 from Republicans.
There are more registered nonpartisan voters in Nevada than Democrats and Republicans because of a 2020 law that calls for automatic registration for residents who use the Department of Motor Vehicles. They are registered nonpartisan and may later switch party affiliation.
Many young voters, therefore, are registered nonpartisan and could be the ones in need of a signature cure.
“Youth voter engagement is something that I’ve been passionate about for my entire time in office, but the need for signature cure goes beyond youth,” Aguilar said “Older voters who may sign their names differently throughout the course of their lives, voters who have recently gotten married but haven’t updated their name on their voter registration, and yes, young people who may not have a set signature developed yet.”
Through Monday, 541,506 mail ballots have been accepted for counting, according to the secretary of state. Mail ballots must be postmarked by today and received by 5 p.m. Saturday.