Registered Cherokee Nation voters who want to cast the absentee ballot but have missed the April 16 deadline may still cast an early absentee ballot at the Cherokee Nation Election Comission office on May 29, June 1, 2, and 3.
An In-person Absentee Voting Board will be on duty each day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to assist in-person absentee voters.
Pursuant to Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr's existing Executive Order 2020-02-CTH, voters will be required to wear a mask inside the precinct and precinct officials will be taking all precautions, wearing masks, social distancing and precinct officials will be cleaning voting booths and sanitizing.
In-person absentee voters fill out an application form when they get to the office. They are required to swear that they have not voted a regular mail absentee ballot and that they will not vote at their polling place on Election Day, Saturday, June 5.
The staff verifies a voter's registration information and then directs the voter to the In-person absentee voting board which issues the voter's ballot. The voter marks the ballot in a voting booth and then puts the ballot in the voting device.
The CNEC also provides a drop box for those who want to deliver their mail absentee ballot to the CNEC Office. The drop box is available on May 29, June 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The office is located at 17763 S. Muskogee Ave., Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Contact the CNEC Office for more informatioin at 918-458-5899 or 800-353-2895.
Precincts will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 5, for the Cherokee Nation General Election.
Pursuant to Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.'s existing Executive Order 2020-02-CTH, voters will be required to wear a mask inside the precinct and precinct officials will be taking all precautions, wearing masks, social distancing and precinct officials will be cleaning voting booths and sanitizing.
CNEC provides voters some tips on how to make their vote count:
• A valid marking, a filled-in box, is shown on posters at the precinct and inside the voting booths. If a voter makes mistakes marking their ballot, the voter should not try to correct those errors. Instead, the voter should follow the spoiled ballot procedure. The precinct official will issue a new ballot to the voter.
• Voters are urged to take their voter identification cards with them to the polls. Voter identification cards will be mailed out in April to all voters registered in district. The card can help officials find your name in the precinct signature book, and it may also help them resolve the problem if you are not listed in the book.
• Voters whose names are not found in the precinct signature book or a voter who disagrees with the information shown in the signature book may cast a challenged ballot. A challenged ballot is sealed in a special envelope and counted after the challenged ballots are returned to the CNEC office if the voter's information can be verified by the election commission.
Anyone who is eligible, in line at the precinct at 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 5, 2021, will be entitled to vote.
If your precinct has changed, the information of the location is printed on the Voter ID card you will receive in April 2021. If you think your precinct has changed and you did not receive a new voter registration card, you may contact the Cherokee Nation Election Commission, 918-458-5899 or 1-800-353-2895 to verify your current precinct location.