Voters, check your mailboxes.

Clerk and Recorder Steve Schleiker’s office has mailed about 450,820 ballots for the March 5 presidential primary election to all eligible, active registered Democratic, Republican and unaffiliated voters in El Paso County, his office said in a news release Monday.

County clerks must mail presidential primary ballots by Friday, according to a news release from Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s office.

Schleiker said voters should keep updated on current Republican and Democratic candidates, and should be aware some of the presidential candidates have since ended their campaigns. The Secretary of State’s Office could not remove those candidate names from the ballot due to legal requirements and deadlines, he said.

As of Monday afternoon, Republican presidential candidates Gov. Chris Christie, Gov. Ron DeSantis, Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Vivek Ramaswamy have publicly suspended their campaigns. Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, too, has suspended her campaign.

Votes for a person who is no longer a viable candidate will not be counted, according to the release from El Paso County.

In primary elections, unaffiliated voters receive a ballot packet containing a Republican candidate ballot and a Democratic candidate ballot. However, unaffiliated voters may only vote and return one ballot, Schleiker said.

The clerk advised unaffiliated voters to destroy and discard the other ballot. If unaffiliated voters return both ballots voted, neither ballot will be counted.

Voters affiliated with a minor party in Colorado won’t receive a presidential primary ballot, Griswold’s office said in its release.

How to vote

Eligible Coloradans can register to vote and update their voter registration through Feb. 26, and still receive a ballot in the mail, at govotecolorado.gov. 

After Feb. 26, residents can register to vote, receive a ballot and vote in-person at a voting center until 7 p.m. on Election Day, March 5.

Active, registered voters who don’t receive their primary ballots by Feb. 22 should contact the El Paso County Elections Department at 719-575-8683. 

To track the status of your ballot, sign up for BallotTrax at ballottrax.coloradosos.gov/voter.

There are 39 secure 24-hour ballot drop-box locations throughout El Paso County. Each drop box is under 24/7 camera surveillance that was upgraded last year, and the public can view motion-triggered events at any of the ballot boxes online at epcvotes.com. Click on the “Election Security and Ballot Box Camera” section on the webpage.

Voters can also return presidential primary ballots in the mail, taking care to affix adequate postage onto the return envelope. Schleiker recommended voters return their completed presidential primary ballots no later than Feb. 26 to ensure the Clerk and Recorder’s Office receives it by 7 p.m. March 5. 

Mailed ballots received after 7 p.m. on Election Day will not be counted, regardless of postmark.

Voters who need replacement ballots or other in-person services can visit the Voter Service and Polling Center at 1675 W. Garden of the Gods Road.

Additional Voter Service and Polling Centers in El Paso County will open Feb. 26 and March 4, Schleiker said. A full list of locations and hours of operations is online at clerkandrecorder.elpasoco.com/elections/ballot-drop-boxes-vspc-locations.

For more elections information, visit epcvotes.com or contact the El Paso County Elections Department at 719-575-8683 or by email at elections@elpasoco.com. 

Voters in Teller County who wish to register to vote by form can download voter registration forms from the Teller County elections website at tellercounty.gov/Elections. Residents can also pick up the forms at either of the Teller County Clerk and Recorder’s offices, at 101 W. Bennett Ave. in Cripple Creek or at 800 Research Drive, Suite 200 in Woodland Park.

For more information about elections in Teller County, contact the Teller County Elections Department at tellercounty.gov/Elections, 719-689-2951 or email elections@co.teller.co.us.

County clerks across Colorado are mailing out ballots for the 2024 presidential primary election to all eligible active, registered Democratic, Republican and unaffiliated voters this week. The presidential primary election is on March 5. In this file photo from March 2020, Cristina Bundukamara holds her daughter Eridanus, 2, as she marks her ballot for the 2020 presidential primary election at a voting station at the El Paso County Clerk’s Office downtown branch in Colorado Springs.

The Gazette file