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Early voting for the June primaries started this past Friday, May 2 both here and around the Commonwealth. However, it’s a much smaller set of races than originally expected, as Republicans have already chosen their candidates in the statewide races for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general. 

Democrats, meanwhile, will hold primaries in the lieutenant governor and attorney general races. In some other parts of the Commonwealth, there are also primaries for seats in the House of Delegates, but that’s not the case here. There will be no Democratic primary for governor, as only one candidate, Abigail Spanberger, qualified. On the Republican side, current lieutenant governor Winsome Earle-Sears is the nominee for governor, with John Reid as the candidate for lieutenant governor and current attorney general Jason Miyares is running for re-election.

With that being said, early voting for the June 17 primary elections will run through Saturday, June 14. But early voting can be confusing. Over the last few days, The Herald has been asked where people go to vote and what to bring if you want to vote early. Residents also want to know who’s on the ballot. 

Let’s answer the easy one first. Who is on the ballot? The Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor include attorney Alex Bastani, 15th District State Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, Prince William County School Board Chair Babur Lateef, 22nd District State Sen. Aaron Rouse, federal prosecutor Victor Salgado and former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney. The winner of that race will take on John Reid in the November election. 

In the race to be the Democratic nominee for attorney general, there’s former Norfolk attorney and former House of Delegates member Jay Jones and current lawyer Shannon Taylor. The winner of that race will go on to face Miyares in the November general election. As mentioned, Miyares had no challengers for the Republican nomination, so he automatically advances to run for re-election. 

So now you know which candidates are running. As for how you vote? Here’s how that works. 

Where can I go vote? 

In Virginia, the primary elections, as we mentioned before, are set for Tuesday, June 17. As a result, early voting started on Friday, May 2. Why? That’s because early voting starts 45 days prior to the primary. 

To be clear, however, that doesn’t mean you head to the same precinct as you do in November. 

Early voting is limited to one location, the registrar’s office in each county. In Prince Edward County, that’s located on the second floor of the courthouse at 124 N. Main St. in Farmville. For Buckingham, it’s at 13360 W. James Anderson Highway. And for Cumberland, the office is at 1487 Anderson Highway.

From now through June 14, citizens will be able to vote at the registrar’s office in their respective counties from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and Saturdays on June 7 and June 14, also from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

What should I bring for early voting? 

To vote early, you will need to do a few things. First, you’ll need to provide your name and address. Second, you have to show an ID. Acceptable IDs include a driver’s license, DMV-issued ID card, employee ID card with a photo, US Military ID or government-issued ID card. You can also use a recent utility bill, bank statement, government check, or paycheck containing your name and address.

If you haven’t registered to vote yet, there’s still time. The deadline to register and vote in this June primary is Tuesday, May 27.

That May 27 deadline also goes for people who just moved. Regardless of where you moved from, be it out of state or just the county next door, you must get your registration updated by May 27. You can do that at your local registrar’s office, at the address we reference above.

What about absentee ballots? 

If you can’t make it over to vote early in person, there’s also an absentee option. You can request an absentee ballot from your local registrar, then fill it out and return it via mail or in-person drop-off. 

A witness signature is required on all mail-in ballots cast in this year’s election. If a ballot is missing that signature or any other required information, the voter will be contacted by their local elections office and asked to correct it.