Election Day is November 3. Your chance to vote starts Wednesday.
A busy Tuesday doesn’t have to get between you and your ballot. Here are the local options—and the deadline that arrives first.
If November 3 already looks crowded on your calendar, there’s some breathing room: you can cast your ballot before Election Day.
Early voting begins Wednesday, October 14, across Iowa. That’s also when county auditors can start mailing ballots to voters who have requested them. For residents around La Porte City and Dysart, it opens another way to fit voting around work, family and everything else a Tuesday can bring.
But there’s a date worth circling sooner than November: Monday, October 19.
That’s the deadline to request a mailed absentee ballot. Your county auditor must receive the written request by 5 p.m.—putting it in the mail that day won’t meet the deadline. Black Hawk County’s election office specifically reminds voters that postmarks don’t count.
For La Porte City voters registered in Black Hawk County, voting early in person begins Wednesday at the courthouse in Waterloo, 316 E. Fifth St. Voting takes place in the basement conference room, with regular hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Bring an accepted form of identification.
There’s a weekend option, too. The Cedar Valley SportsPlex in Waterloo will host satellite voting Saturday, October 17, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Any eligible Black Hawk County voter can use that location—something to consider if you’re already heading into Waterloo that day.
For Dysart voters registered in Tama County, the county’s election page lists the auditor’s office at 104 W. State St. in Toledo as its absentee voting location. The office can answer questions about voting arrangements at 641-484-2740, extension 3.
If you choose a mailed ballot, leave time for its return trip. The Secretary of State’s office says completed ballots must reach the county auditor by 8 p.m. on November 3. It also passes along the Postal Service’s recommendation to mail your ballot at least a week before Election Day.
You can still vote on November 3, when polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Early voting simply gives you more room to choose a day that works—and one less thing to squeeze into Election Day.