The Somerset County clerk has released a video instructing people how to fill out their mail-in ballots for the upcoming November election after receiving multiple inquiries from the public about voting.

The county will be mailing out 250,000 ballots and they should be arriving by the first week of October. County Clerk Steve Peter has put out a step-by-step tutorial on the process.

When the ballot arrives, “you should look at both sides of the ballot as most ballots have school board elections and public questions on the back,” Peter says. “Once you decide how to vote, completely fill in the oval to the right with a black or blue pen. Fill it in - the machine will not count checkmarks, Xs or incomplete ovals."

Once the ballot is complete, the voter should put it in the envelope, seal it and sign it. From there, they have several options. Ballots can be put in the mailbox at the local post office or drop off at a ballot dropbox. There will be 13 ballot boxes around Somerset County. Other counites will also have various ballot drop boxes in several locations.

Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order making the 2020 election a mostly-by-mail election. Only people with a handicap will be permitted to cast their ballots in a voting booth.

Voters who do not wish to vote by mail can vote at a polling location, but they will have to fill out a provisional ballot that will only be counted after the election. County clerks will need to count all of the other ballots first and then cross-check against the provisional ballots to make sure that people aren’t voting more than once.

Peter says that this year, voters will have to be patient concerning the election results. By law, ballots will still be counted a week after the election since all ballots can be postmarked until Nov. 3.

“We are not going to know this year on election night. Be patient and allow the process to play out the way it should and we will have accurate results when available,” he says

Peter suggests that voters read the ballot directions carefully and if they still have questions, contact their local county clerk or Board of Elections.