The deadline to register to vote in the 2024 primary election on Tuesday, July 30, is coming up.
Elections typically play out in two stages, a primary election, during which registered political parties pick their candidates for partisan seats, and a general election, during which those partisans and any independent candidates stand for election to office.
Unlike some states where local races are decided during the general election, nonpartisan races, like those for Sedona City Council, Cottonwood City Council, Clarkdale Town Council, Jerome Town Council and Camp Verde Town Council that we cover, the primary election is the de facto general election, with the state general election serving as a runoff election, if necessary.
If there is a needed runoff election, it will be held in November. With only two candidates for mayor in Camp Verde, Cottonwood and Clarkdale, it’s highly unlikely, but possible, that neither candidate gets 50% plus one vote, so it’s a near-certainty that the mayoral election will likely be determined July 30.
A runoff for council is more possible with 10 candidates campaigning for three seats in Cottonwood, eight candidates campaigning for three seats in Cottonwood and four candidates campaigning for two seats in Clarkdale. One or two candidates could meet the 50% plus one vote threshold, with two or four others under that minimum, and then face each other in a November runoff.
So if you want to have your voice heard in your local election for mayor and council, you need to register to vote soon so you can have your votes counted on or before July 30.
Readers will note that we have been running stories on candidates last week and this week so that they can all be presented to voters before early ballots are mailed out on Wednesday, July 3. You can vote early in person or vote a replacement ballot at the Yavapai County Recorder’s offices at 10 S. 6th St., Cottonwood, 1015 Fair St., Prescott, or 7351 E. Skoog Blvd., Prescott Valley. Identification is required.
If you are a registered independent, other or “party not designated” and are on the Active Early Voter List, you must tell the registrar which party ballot you want mailed. The Democratic and Republican parties allow unaffiliated voters to vote in their primary elections; the Libertarian Party does not. Local elections for council are nonpartisan, so everyone can vote for all the candidates on the local ballot.
If you are in Coconino County — Uptown, Oak Creek Canyon or the Chapel area — contact the Coconino County Recorder’s Office at coconino.az.gov or (928) 679-7889. If you’re in Yavapai County, which is the other side of Sedona, five Chapel-area subdivisions on the west side of State Route 179, the Village of Oak Creek, Clarkdale, Cottonwood, Jerome, Camp Verde or unincorporated communities in the rest of the Verde Valley, contact the Yavapai County Recorder’s office at YavapaiVotes.gov or (928) 771-3248. The last day to request an early ballot be mailed to you is Friday, July 19. Call the appropriate county recorder’s office or visit my.arizona.vote to request a one-time early ballot. The last day to request an early ballot be mailed is Friday, July 19. Call the appropriate county or visit my.arizona.vote to request a one-time early ballot.
Do not mail your voted ballot back after Tuesday, July 23. However, you can use Yavapai County’s 19 official ballot drop boxes to drop off your ballot up to election day. Coconino County voters in east Sedona or Oak Creek Canyon can drop off early ballots at Sedona City Hall, 102 Roadrunner Drive.
We encourage all potential voters who have never voted before and new residents qualified to register to vote to do so as soon as possible. It’s not hard, but super-easy, barely an inconvenience. The easiest place to register is online at servicearizona.com, a website run by the Arizona Motor Vehicle Division, by clicking the blue “Voter Registration” box. You can register until 11:59 p.m. on Monday, July 1. Existing voters should also check their registration status on the site. Many received a new voter ID card earlier this year. If you didn’t, go and check now.
To vote, you must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of Arizona, have not been convicted of a felony or have had your civil rights restored by a court or judge, not been adjudicated incapacitated with voting rights revoked and be at least 18 years old by the next general election, i.e., born before Nov. 6, 2006.
Not all new residents in the Sedona are aware of the distinction, so this reminder: While a voter’s mailing address may read “Sedona,” only voters living within the Sedona city limits can vote for Sedona mayor or City Council candidates — residents who live outside city limits in Oak Creek Canyon, the Village of Oak Creek or the Red Rock Loop Road areas cannot vote in city of Sedona elections because they live in unincorporated county jurisdiction, not within city limits proper.
Likewise, voters in the Verde Villages, Bridgeport, Cornville and Verde Santa Fe cannot vote in city of Cottonwood elections.
Additionally, a business address can’t be used for voter registration. Your voter registration is “where you live,” according to the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office.
Christopher Fox Graham
Managing Editor
