Get Registered

1. Federal law requires that you be a US citizen, by birth or by naturalization, and 18 years old.
2. Check to see if you are registered to vote. Go to Can I Vote.Org and enter CO in the state abbreviation. You will then need to fill in your name, date of birth and the town you live in, which is Broomfield. If you are registered, you will see the following information.
   1. The party you are registered under (Republican, Democrat, or unaffiliated).
   2. The polling location address where you will vote.
   3. A link to the telephone number of your local registrar of voters.

Determine if you need an absentee ballot. If you are an active duty member of the uniformed services, or a citizen living outside of the United States, you can still vote via absentee ballot. Go to the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP) website. This website provides links to active-duty members of the Armed Forces, Merchant Marine, Public Health Service, NOAA, and their family members, and to United States citizens who are living outside the U.S. for work, school or other reasons. Click on your state and you will see the following information:

• The date of the next general election
• The deadline date you must register by
• The deadline date you must request your absentee ballot by
• The date you must return your marked ballot (it must be postmarked before the election)
• Links to your state’s absentee voting guidelines and to your state’s election website
• Links to register to vote in the USA, it you are not already registered, and links to requesting and tracking your ballot.

1. Go to the Polls
   1. Ask your local officials about how you will cast your ballot, or visit the Verified Voting website to research the type of voting machines that are used in Broomfield. Voting can be done by paper and pencil, mechanically or electronically. The most common ways to vote are:
      1. Paper ballot. You simply mark your choices with a pencil (the ballot looks similar to the type of school test you take by filling in answer circles). You place your marked ballot in a locked box or put it through a scanner (someone will help you with this if you aren’t comfortable doing it yourself) before you leave the polling room.
      2. Mechanical voting machines. Many localities still use mechanical voting machines. You step inside the “box” and the curtain automatically closes behind you so that you may vote in private. The candidates and issues are listed on the left side of the machine. Depress the small lever next to each name or ballot question—either “yes” or “no.” When you have cast all your votes, you will slide a large lever (located at the base of the machine) all the way to the right. Your votes are registered in the machine and the lever opens the privacy curtains so that you can exit.
      3. Electronic voting systems. Even though most voters are computer savvy these days, each state that uses electronic voting provides an instructional tutorial to voters before they vote. If you can navigate your way around a computer or a smartphone, then voting electronically will pose no challenge to you. You simply look at the screen, make your selections (touch point screen) and when you have cast all your votes, you touch the “Cast my Vote” button that is located at the bottom of the screen.