Southwestern Colorado counties open polling places despite flood disruptions

Election officials in southwestern Colorado opened polling places on Election Day Tuesday, November 2, as flooding continued to disrupt roads and utilities in the region. La Plata County stated that all election operations would proceed as scheduled despite evacuations and power outages. The county advised residents who could not vote due to emergency conditions to contact the Elections Office at 970-382-6296 or by email so staff could arrange alternative voting methods.

In La Plata County, polling centers at the Clerk and Recorder Office and Fort Lewis College in Durango, the Pine River Library in Bayfield, and the Southern Ute Cultural Center and Museum in Ignacio remained open. These sites operated until 5 p.m. Monday and 7 p.m. Tuesday. Ballot drop boxes are located in four spots in Durango, one in Bayfield, and one in Ignacio. A mobile drop box served residents at Mountain Spirits Liquor on 10 Solomon Drive, operating from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Archuleta County adjusted several voting locations in response to the weather. The drop box at town hall closed due to flooding, but a mobile unit with a bipartisan team of judges collected ballots in the parking lot of Feather Your Nest. The main voter service center at the Archuleta County Election Office opened from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. The Ross Aragon Community Center voting site moved to the Archuleta County Courthouse at 109 Haran Park Drive in Pagosa Springs for Tuesday voting only. A joint La Plata and Archuleta polling center also opened at the Pine River Library in Bayfield for Archuleta residents.

Conejos County Clerk and Recorder Nathan Ruybal said road closures would not impact the collection of ballots from the county's three drop boxes. He reported via email that turnout appeared to be at normal levels. Residents voted in person at the Commissioners Boardroom in Conejos from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. Drop boxes at the Conejos County Courthouse, La Jara Town Hall, and Romeo Town Hall remained accessible.

In Montezuma County, Clerk and Recorder Cindy Hall noted that the voting service center at 965 Sixth St. in Del Norte is located four blocks uphill from the flooded areas. She said turnout was typical for a non-presidential general election. In-person voting sites opened at the Ute Mountain Ute Community Center in Towaoc, the Montezuma County Annex in Cortez, the Dolores Public Library, and the Mancos Public Library. Most of these sites operated until 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Residents across the affected counties were directed to specific addresses for ballot submission. In Montezuma County, drop boxes stayed open at the Clerk and Recorder's Office in Cortez, Dolores Town Hall, Mancos Town Hall, Cortez City Hall, the Lewis Post Office, and Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Headquarters in Towaoc. Officials in La Plata County encouraged voters to call the local call center at 970-385-8700 for questions regarding the flooding and to sign up for emergency alerts at www.readylaplata.org.