Local election officials are hoping to keep residents away from the ballot box this year, but they still want people to vote.

O'Brien County Auditor Barb Rohwer has joined other election commissioners across the state in emphasizing mail-in absentee voting for the June 2 primary election. The COVID-19 pandemic is behind the push, as health officials have urged people to limit social interaction by staying home as much as possible.

"We've had really good response thus far with mail-out absentee ballots," Rohwer said on Monday. "We had 280 on Saturday alone. I'm not quite sure what our total is going to be."

In an effort to reduce the number of polling places for the primary election, the Iowa Secretary of State recently sent a ballot request form to every registered voter in Iowa. Many county election leaders followed with their own reminder in hopes of making it as easy as possible to vote by mail.

Voters should fill out the postage-paid request form and mail it to the county auditor's office. A ballot will be mailed to the voter with a return envelope affixed with postage. All requests for an absentee ballot must be received in the auditor's office on May 22 by 5 p.m.

If you did not receive the mailing from the secretary of state's office, you can go to the county's website to print out the absentee ballot application or call the auditor's office at (712) 957-3225. Voter registration forms and sample ballots for the primary election are also on the website.

The push towards absentee voting has also led election officials to cut the number of polling locations. In O'Brien County, voters living in Sheldon and the townships of Carroll and Floyd will vote at the Crossroads Pavilion in Sheldon. All other voters will cast ballots at the Primghar Community Building.

"We picked Sheldon because it's the largest population center in the county, and Primghar because it's centrally located for everyone else," Rohwer explained.

Only one polling location at the Clay County Administration Building in Spencer will be open for voters in Clay County.

Rohwer couldn't wager a guess on voter turnout next month. She said the COVID-19 pandemic has officials already concerned about the November general election, which features several federal offices on the ballot, including president.

"There's been calls for an all-mail out election," Rohwer said. "I don't know if that will go anywhere, and that of course will take legislation."