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An election emergency declaration issued by the State Election Board Secretary on Wednesday, March 18th will impact elections scheduled for Tuesday, April 7th in Washington County.

The County Election Board Secretary confirmed that the election emergency allowed all entities, including those with statutory school board member elections, to reschedule their April 7th elections to another date allowed by law. The declaration was issued in response to the current COVID-19 health crisis, which has resulted in federal, state, and local restrictions.

County Election Board Secretary, Yvonne House, said the following elections have been postponed and rescheduled:

• City of Bartlesville, rescheduled for August 25th. 
• City of Dewey, Bartlesville Public Schools, Oklahoma Union Public Schools and Collinsville Public Schools have rescheduled for June 30th. 
• Caney Valley Public Schools and Copan Public Schools have also rescinded their election and will reschedule for a date to be determined later.

Absentee ballots issued for the April 7th election are no longer valid and should be destroyed.

Voters who were issued an absentee ballot for the April 7th election will be issued a new ballot for the Tuesday, June 30th or Tuesday, August 25th election, if they are currently signed up to receive absentee ballots for all elections in which they are eligible to vote for the 2020 election year.

Voters who applied for an absentee ballot for the April 7th election only, will need to submit a new absentee ballot request for the June 30 or August 25 election in order to vote in the rescheduled elections. Absentee ballots can be requested online using the OK Voter Portal at ok.gov/elections/OVP.html. Applications can also be downloaded at ok.gov/elections/Voter_Info/Absentee_Voting/index.html.

The Washington County Election Board will continue to conduct business as usual by phone, email, and mail. Business hours may be modified due to the unusual circumstances, but calls and emails will be returned in a timely manner. Voters who need to conduct business in person can call or email the County Election Board to make special arrangements. Voters can also visit the Oklahoma State Election Board website at elections.ok.gov for more information.

The Washington County Election Board is located on the first floor of the Courthouse at 420 S Johnstone Ave in Bartlesville.  For more information, contact the County Election Board at 918-337-2850 or washingtoncounty@elections.ok.gov.