It’s time to pull out your voter registration cards and start thinking about the upcoming elections in Hamilton County. November 4 is election day for all the city and school board elections in the state of Iowa.

You may already know who you want to vote for, but the Hamilton County auditors office wants to make sure everyone is eligible.

“If you are a new voter or have moved, you will need a picture i.d., and proof of residency,” said Kim Schaa, Hamilton County Auditor. “Examples of identification would be a drivers’ license, a utility bill with your name on it, a passport, or a bank statement.”

The first step is to assure you are registered to vote, and to know where your polling place is located. The easiest way is by contacting the auditors office at 515-832-9510.

“If not sure of registration, you can call or stop in and we’ll help you,” said Schaa.

The Hamilton County Courthouse is located at 2300 Superior Street, the southeast side of Webster City, just off of Highway 20.

The first day to cast a ballot early is on October 15. This can be done at the Hamilton County Courthouse at the Auditors office, located on the first floor of the courthouse. The last day to vote at the courthouse is on November 3 at 4:30 p.m.

Absentee ballots can be requested now. The auditor’s office is already receiving requests for absentee ballots, according to Schaa. But none will be mailed out until October 15.

“The biggest mistake we see when mailing a request for absentee ballots is that it is not completely filled out,” said Schaa. “That, and making sure it is signed.”

Pre-registering to vote is recommended by Schaa. “The pre-registration deadline is October 20,” she said, “Then all you need is a photo id.”

Another easy step is by verifying information online.

The Iowa Secretary of State’s office manages a website that will verify voting status, polling location and precinct name. Voters are urged to confirm their voting location, but often locations have changed since the last election.

The site that is linked to the Secretary of States website is voteready.iowa.gov. Once there, click on the link that says registering to vote.

The first screen is a reminder that registering to vote is a legal requirement to vote in elections in Iowa. The voter must be at least 17 years old, a United States Citizen and an Iowa resident.

Voting is not allowed for convicted felons, mentally incompetent determined by a court of law, or claim the right to vote in any other place.

Any voter who is not registered on or before October 21 may still register and vote by providing proof of identity and residence. This is called election day registration and can be done during in-person absentee voting at the courthouse or at the polling location.

For proof of residency, the following documents are acceptable according to the Iowa Secretary of States office:

Iowa driver’s license

Current photo ID that contains an expiration date

Iowa non-operator ID

Out-of-state driver’s license or non-operator ID

U.S. passport

U.S. military or veteran ID

ID card issued by employer

Student ID issued by Iowa high school or college

Tribal ID card/document

For proof of residence: If the photo id does not contain the current address, another document may be used. It can be either paper or electronic, to prove home residency. It must contain name, current address and current within 45 days. Those documents include:

Residential lease

Utility bill (including a cell phone bill)

Bank statement

Paycheck

Government check or other government document

Property tax statement

If none of these are available, there is one other avenue to vote. This is by bringing an “attester”.

An attester is a registered voter from the same precinct who will attest for to identity and residency.. Both the attester and voter will be required to sign an oath swearing the statements being made are true, according to the Secretary of State’s website.

It further warns that falsely attesting, or being attested for, is registration fraud. It is a class “D” felony and is punishable by a fine of up to $10,245 and up to 5 years in prison.