The Chronicles Of Grant County
Voting By Mail In Grant County
2026
(This image is part of a photograph produced by Lawrence Jackson and provided courtesy of The White House, June 23, 202
All American citizens eligible to vote are encouraged to vote in the General Election being held this year. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
One option available to registered voters is to vote by mail through an absentee ballot.
Registered voters living in Grant County may request an absentee ballot to vote by mail. According to information from the Grant County Clerk's Office, "You can request an absentee ballot application by mail, telephone, online at NMVote.org, or in person at the clerk's office."
The Grant County Clerk's Office is located at 1400 Highway 180 East, Silver City, NM, 88061. The office is open from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday to Friday.
The telephone number for the Grant County Clerk's Office is 575-574-0042.
The last day to request an absentee ballot for this General Election is October 20, 2026.
"You have several options for delivering your absentee ballot," according to information from the New Mexico Office of the Secretary of State. "However, always make sure that, whether you place it in the mail or hand deliver it, you always follow all of the instructions to secure it in the required envelopes and fill in the required voter information under the privacy flap of the official return envelope."
This office noted that "All absentee ballots must include the required information and be received by 7:00 PM on Election Day, to be accepted and counted."
A postmark does not count.
The ballot must be physically received by the Grant County Clerk's Office by 7:00 PM on Election Day to be counted.
According to information from Grant County, you can return your absentee ballot by postal mail, at the drop box, at the Grant County Clerk's Office, or at any polling location: "Absentee ballots may be mailed using the postage paid envelope included with your absentee ballot"; "Absentee ballots may be dropped off in the drop box located in the parking lot of the Grant County Administration Building"; and "Absentee ballots may be dropped off to the clerk's office or any polling location during early voting or on Election Day."
An absentee ballot can be dropped off, noted a statement from the Grant County Clerk's Office, by "The voter who requested the ballot" or by "A member of your immediate family or your caregiver may hand-deliver your absentee ballot; provided that the voter has subscribed the official mailing envelope of the absentee ballot."
According to information from the New Mexico Office of the Secretary of State, "'Immediate family' means the spouse, children, parents or siblings of a voter. If any one of these authorized people returns the mailed ballot of the voter, they must sign the official return envelope."
If you chose to return your absentee ballot by postal mail, please be aware that the United States Postal Service (USPS) suggests that you mail early. Specifically, the USPS explicitly states: "We recommend that you mail your completed ballot before Election Day and at least a week before the deadline by which your mail-in ballot must be received by your local election office."
In other words, if you cannot mail in your absentee ballot at least a week before November 3, 2026, please physically take your ballot to the drop box located in the parking lot of the Grant County Administration Building, take your ballot to the Grant County Clerk's Office, or take your ballot to any polling station during early voting or on Election Day.
It cannot be emphasized enough that all absentee ballots from Grant County voters must be received by the Grant County Clerk's Office at its office or at a polling location by 7:00 PM on Election Day, November 3, 2026.
If you chose to mail your ballot close to Election Day, please heed a statement from the USPS: "The Postal Service recognizes that Election Mail, and Ballot Mail in particular, is time-sensitive. We are committed to the expeditious processing and delivery of Ballot Mail. However, to minimize the risk that Ballot Mail will not arrive before your state's deadline, we recommend as a best practice that voters act early if they plan to use the mail to return their completed ballot."
To view the suggestions of the USPS regarding returning your ballot by postal mail, please view the video from the postal service at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1q748EDT3zw .
Further details on voting in Grant County can be obtained at https://grantcountynm.gov/218/Elections .
Further details on absentee voting in the State of New Mexico can also be obtained at https://www.sos.nm.gov/voting-and-elections/voter-information-portal-nmvote-org/returning-your-absentee-ballot/ .
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© 2026 Richard McDonough
