Election update from our Secretary of State
Earlier this month, I spent time with auditors and elections staff from all 39 counties to talk about elections access, security, and several crucial improvements we’ll be making to county elections statewide. We also talked about the new laws passed by the Legislature earlier this year and how they’ll affect elections in Washington, and heard from representatives from the Department of Homeland Security and the Washington Military Department. The dialogue was extremely valuable, especially as we head into the 2018 Primary.
Speaking of which, all 81,628 UOCAVA voters have been sent their ballots for the upcoming Primary. UOCAVA stands for Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act. It covers U.S. citizens who are active members of the Uniformed Services, the Merchant Marine, and the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, their eligible family members and U.S. citizens residing outside the United States.
If you are eligible to vote and haven’t yet registered, please visit MyVote.wa.gov right now to do that! Just type in your information and the system will tell you if you’re registered in Washington or not. July 9th is the deadline for voter registration, address change, and other updates. Ballots will be mailed July 20th, the same day Accessible Voting Units are available at voting centers. July 30th is the deadline for new Washington State voter registration (in-person only).
Since ballot return envelope postage will be free this year, be sure to drop your ballot into the mail a few days before the August 7th Primary (to give the Postal Service time to get it to us), or take it to a ballot dropbox before 8 p.m. on August 7th. You can find dropbox locations and county elections office information on our website, www.sos.wa.gov/elections.
Thanks for your time and interest in our office. Please follow our office on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, and forward this message to anyone you think might be interested in reading it.
– Secretary of State, Kim Wyman
Dig into some local and state history
The State Library is delighted to present Classics in Washington History. This digital collection of full-text books brings together rare, out of print titles for easy access by students, teachers, genealogists and historians. Visit Washington’s early years through the lives of the men and women who lived and worked in Washington Territory and State.
Choose a subject to view these publications from this website – https://www.sos.wa.gov/library/publications.aspx.
20th Century Events
County and Regional History
Exploration and Early Travel
Industrial Workers of the World Collection
Geography
Luring Folks West
Military History
Native Americans
Natural History
Pioneer Life
Special Collections
Territorial and State Government
Wagon Trains and the Oregon Trail
Washington Voters Pamphlets
Women’s Stories
– Secretary of State, Kim Wyman
Nominate a corporation that cares about home
Many Washington businesses go to remarkable lengths to support their hometowns, from sponsoring charity fundraisers to supporting volunteer work and other acts of employee generosity, and they deserve special recognition.
Nominations can soon be submitted for the 2018 Corporations for Communities awards, given to for-profit companies that perform extraordinary charitable acts for the communities they serve. It’s a terrific opportunity for people to help recognize these companies that contribute to local causes.
Nominations for this year’s award begin July 16th and must be submitted by August 31st. Forms can be found on our website at www.sos.wa.gov/corps/corpsforcommunities/. Desirable qualities include charitable activities such as paid time for employee volunteer work, sponsoring and organizing fundraisers, matching of employee giving efforts, making cash and in-kind donations, and building a community of giving within their organizations.
Any Washingtonian can nominate a business for the Corporations for Communities awards, and all for-profit corporations, limited liability companies (LLC), and limited partnerships of any size are eligible. Nominees need to be registered with the Office of the Secretary of State and must be in compliance with state and federal laws.
The Corporations for Communities program began in 2009 as a way to recognize exceptional Washington businesses that demonstrate a commitment to giving in order to improve local or regional social and environmental conditions. The award program is run by the Corporations & Charities Division of our office.
– Secretary of State, Kim Wyman
