How to Vote on Election Day

It’s Election Day, and a raft of candidates are nearing the finish line of a contentious campaign season shaped by the coronavirus pandemic.

In Montana, the polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today, and while Flathead County is one of 46 counties in Montana that adopted an all-mail format for the Nov. 3 general election — meaning every active registered voter in Flathead County was sent a ballot by mail this year — residents can still register to vote and fill out their ballots in person until polls close.

The only location for in-person voting this year is at the election office in the Flathead County South Campus Building in Kalispell, which was bustling on the morning of Nov. 3 as voters entered through the main floor doors and either dropped their pink ballots into the two red ballot boxes downstairs, an area monitored by a pair of volunteers, or waited to register or vote in person upstairs. At the top of the stairs, a line stretched down the hallway as people waited to register or vote in person.

Local voters who have already received their ballots have a multitude of drop-off options on Election Day, with collection boxes and drive-thru drops situated across the Flathead Valley. Most voters had already turned in their ballots by Election Day, with the Secretary of State reporting having received 53,319 Flathead County ballots as of Nov. 2 out of the 67,445 sent.

As always, visit the Flathead County Election Department for more information and check the status of your ballot or confirm your registration by visiting the Montana My Voter Page on the Secretary of State website.

In-Person Voting for Mail Ballot Election  

Flathead County Election Office (Conference Room #200)
40 11th St. W., Kalispell
Election Day hours 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Places of Deposit for Mail Ballot Election

Flathead County Election Office Lobby
40 11th St. W., Kalispell
Election Day hours 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Columbia Falls City Hall
130 6th St. W., Room A, Columbia Falls
Election Day hours 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Whitefish City Hall
418 E. Second Street, Whitefish
Election Day hours 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Lakeside QRU
201 Bills Road, Lakeside
Election Day hours 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Smith Valley Fire Hall
3496 U.S. Hwy 2 W., Kalispell
Election Day hours 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Drive-Thru Drop Locations

Flathead County Election Office Alley
Located just off of 11th St. W., Kalispell
Election Day hours 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Flathead County Fairgrounds
265 North Meridian, Kalispell
Election Day 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.