While this year’s presidential election has hogged headlines, today’s election decides several local offices.
Teton County voters have five locations to choose from: Alta and Teton County libraries, the Recreation Center, Weed & Pest and the Old Wilson Schoolhouse.
Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. A recent change to Wyoming voting laws requires a valid form of identification if voting in person.
Teton County voters will decide a new mayor as well as two new seats on the Jackson Town Council and the Board of County Commissioners. Voters will also determine whether a tax ballot initiative that would add a seventh penny of sales tax to fund a new courthouse passes. State races for Teton County are uncontested.
Beyond the presidential race, today’s race will determine the House and Senate seats for Wyoming. Incumbents Senator John Barrasso and Representative Harriet Hageman are expected to retain their positions.
Statewide, voting Wyomingites will determine the balance of power in the legislature between more moderate and more conservative Republicans, whether there’s any Indigenous representation in the state legislature and whether to amend the constitution related to property taxes.
Early Voting
Early voting turnout is high in Teton County and across the state. As of Nov. 4, county clerk Maureen Murphy said over half of the county’s registered voters had cast their ballots, a trend that outpaces the rest of the state.
Of the 14,112 registered voters in Teton County, 7,805 have cast ballots as of Monday.
“It’s a presidential election and our community generally turns out over 90% of our registered voters for the general election during a presidential year,” Murphy said.
Local races are often tight though races should be called Tuesday night, Murphy added.
“In Teton County, your vote does make a huge difference. I know a lot of people now say that their vote might not make a difference on the national scale, but it truly does, especially in our local elections,” Murphy said.
