Election ballots were mailed today. You received your state voters guide last week. When the ballot come, review your decisions, fill it out and put it in the mail or the elections drop box at the library or on the Swinomish Reservation.

Do it by the end of the week, or soon after you have your ballot in hand.

Your vote will definitely be counted if you return it to a county drop box and most likely if it is in the U.S. Mail by Oct. 26.

Voting early ensures your ballot is delivered by Nov. 23, the last day ballots are counted. and eases the work load of U.S. post office and County elections staff. Typically, even half of ballots are cast the last week of an election. The pile up at the elections office is enormous.

Do not allow slow postal service delivery to be a factor. Ballots arriving at the elections office after Nov. 23 arrive too late. Since last spring the postmaster general has worked to slow mail delivery. Ballots delivered by mail too late to be counted are a real possibility. Your absolute guarantee that your vote is counted is your placing it in a County elections box.

Your helping to get the Skagit County vote counted expeditiously is putting it in that box in the first days after receiving it.

And, if you are not registered to vote, get registered. Oct. 26 is the last day for online or mailed registrations and for updates to be received by the Secretary of State.

Your very last chance to register is 8 p.m. on Nov. 3 at the County’s election office. You will cast your ballot, too.

IT IS A HUGE MISTAKE TO MAIL YOUR BALLOT NOV. 3, EVEN IF IT IS POSTMARKED THAT DAY. There is no guarantee it will get to the election office by Nov. 23, the day before counties certify election results.

It is not cliche to say this is the most important presidential election since.1968. Make sure your vote gets into the historical record.

Your vote is needed for every campaign, from the nine statewide offices through Referendum 90 to the PUD commissioner. Be patient and thoughtful and work your way down to the bottom of the ballot.

Make sure your vote is counted. Make sure family, friends and neighbors votes are counted wherever they live. Encourage everyone you know to vote as early as they can, wherever they may live.

Many are wrung out, in states of mental exhaustion. Let us all reduce the possibility of confusion, frustration, suspicion and worry.

Your early voting can reduce tensions locally in the community and for elections staff. That is a great contribution to make toward a bit of momentary peace of mind.