Early Voting begins Saturday in Washoe County

Polling hours extended, safety precautions in place

Vote centers around Washoe County will open at 9 a.m. Saturday, kicking off two weeks of Early Voting.  

Nearly 300,000 residents are registered to vote in Washoe County. As of October 15, more than 34,000 ballots have been dropped off or mailed in. Now voters will have two weeks, October 17-30, to vote in person before Election Day, or continue to mail in or drop off their ballots.  

There are 15 in-person vote centers throughout the county, and voters can choose any voter center that is convenient to them. Vote centers have digital voting booths as well as ballot drop-boxes for those who have already filled out their mail-in ballot and wish to drop it off. There are also an additional 15 drop-off-only locations around the county. 

All vote centers will adhere to COVID-19 safety measures, including sanitization of voting machines between uses, temperature checks, social distancing, and mask requirements. Every vote center is staffed with polling managers who will ensure that the voting process is smooth and safe. 

Washoe County Security, Reno and Sparks police departments, and the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office are working together to ensure a peaceful process at the polls. Federal, state, and local regulations prohibit campaigning at polling locations. No campaigning or signs can be displayed within 100 feet of polling locations, which includes talking to voters about candidates, distributing fliers, or using loudspeakers to broadcast information. Additionally, election-related clothing or accessories are also prohibited inside vote centers. 

“I ask voters to please leave their campaign shirts, hats, buttons or ribbons at home when they go vote,” Registrar of Voters Deanna Spikula said. “They will be asked to cover up or remove campaign material. Additionally, voter intimidation is a very real crime and will not be tolerated at our polling places.”  

Washoe County extended the hours of Early Voting and included larger venues than in the past – Lawlor Events Center and the Reno Sparks Convention Center, for example – to accommodate more voters and keep the wait times to a minimum. However, voters should anticipate some delay during high-traffic times, and they can check the wait times for each location using the Wait Time Tool on the registrar’s website.  

The wait time, voter turnout reports, voting locations, regulations, and all other information is on the registrar’s website, www.washoecounty.us/voters.  

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