2023 primary election live updates: Polls close in Wichita mayor, school board races
Polls close in Wichita; early results released
Updated 7:35 p.m.
Polls closed in Sedgwick County at 7 p.m. The first unofficial results — tallies for advance ballots — were released not long after that. You can find updated results here.
Find live updates in the Wichita mayor’s race here.
Heat doesn’t keep Wichita voters from polls
Updated 5 p.m.
Sweltering heat hasn’t deterred Sedgwick County voters from making it to the polls.
Turnout had already eclipsed the previous three Wichita mayoral contests ahead of the after-work crowd, Election Commissioner Laura Rainwater told reporters around 4 p.m.
Almost 17,000 people had cast ballots in person Tuesday at that point. Another 7,300 voted early in person and more than 8,000 mail-in ballots had been returned by Monday.
“The turnout has been, in spite of the heat, really good,” Rainwater said.
The turnout so far of 12.8% has already topped the 10.2% of registered voters who voted in the 2019 primary and the 9.8% who did so in 2015.
Rainwater said that percentage could tick up to 15% by the time polls close at 7 p.m.
First results, which will consist of early and mail-in votes, are expected to be reported around 7:30 p.m. Rainwater said she’s optimistic that unofficial results could be finalized by 9 p.m.
Results will not be official until the county canvass on Aug. 10.
Wichita voting goes smoothly early on
Updated 8 a.m.
Primary voting that started at 6 a.m. Tuesday has been “going really smoothly so far,” Rainwater said at around 7:40 a.m.
She hadn’t heard of any problems at any of the polling places.
Westlink Church of Christ, where she had just left, had people trickling in. She said it would take less than five minutes to vote there. She then went to Reliance Community Church near Pawnee and 119th Street, which is a larger polling place, but there, too, there was no line.
Based on Wichita’s last two mayoral primaries, Rainwater said she estimates turnout to be around 10%. It was 5.9% as of last night for early and mail-in voting. There are just over 261,000 registered voters in the county, she said.
Rainwater thought the expected record heat could have an impact on turnout.
Anyone who still has a mail ballot will have to have it post-marked today to have it counted, she said, adding they could also drop it off at a polling location or at one of the drop boxes in the county. A list of the drop box locations can be found at sedgwickcounty.org/elections/.
— Michael Stavola, mstavola@wichitaeagle.com
Original story:
Wichita area voters will head to the polls Tuesday on what could be the hottest day of the year.
The high temperature is predicted to be 105 degrees.
Voters will narrow the fields for mayor and school board. They will choose between nine Wichita mayoral candidates in the primary: incumbent Mayor Brandon Whipple, Jared Cerullo, Shelia M. Davis, Bryan Frye, Anthony Gallardo, Tom Kane, Celeste Racette, Julie Rose Stroud and Lily Wu. The top two candidates face each other in November’s general election.
Candidates for the at-large seat on the Wichita school board are Jacob Bakk, Harlan Bascombe, Jesse Borosky, Brent Davis and Melody McCray-Miller.
Voters in southwest Wichita’s City Council District 4 also will slim down a pool of four candidates to two, choosing between candidates Bentley Blubaugh, Dalton Glasscock, Alan Oliver and Judy Pierce.
Cheney Unified School District voters will see an at-large school board seat on their ballot, and Park City residents will vote on a 1% sales tax increase proposal.
To learn about the candidates
You can find The Wichita Eagle’s voting guide at kansas.com/election.
To hear directly from Wichita’s mayoral candidates, you can watch playback of the July 20 debate on the Eagle’s website. The event was hosted by PBS Kansas, the Eagle, KSN News and KAKE News.
When can I vote?
Polls in Sedgwick County open at 6 a.m. Tuesday and close at 7 p.m. As long as you’re in line by 7 p.m. you can cast your ballot.
Where do I vote?
You can find your polling location on the Kansas Secretary of State’s registration information page, along with other resources online at myvoteinfo.voteks.org.
Once you’ve accessed the voter information portal, enter your first and last name and your date of birth. After you click “look up,” you can view your voter registration information, a sample ballot and the address of your polling place.
What do I need to bring?
As long as you’re registered to vote, all you need to bring is a valid photo identification, like a driver’s license, passport or U.S. military ID.
All valid forms of identification can be viewed on the Kansas Secretary of State’s website.
What if I have problems voting?
If you have problems casting a ballot, call the Sedgwick County Election Office at 316-660-7100.
You can also let The Eagle know about any problems you have. Email tips@wichitaeagle.com or call 316-268-6216.
Can I still return my mail-in ballot?
Yes, you can drop off your advance ballot at your polling location or any of the county’s drop boxes through 7 p.m. on Election Day.
The county drop box locations for the primary are:
Boston Recreation Center, 6655 E. Zimmerly, Wichita, KS 67207
Evergreen Park Recreation Center, 2700 N. Woodland, Wichita, KS 67204
Sedgwick County Health Department, 1900 E. Ninth St., Wichita, KS 67214
Orchard Recreation Center, 4808 W. Ninth St., Wichita, KS 67212
Linwood Recreation Center, 1901 S. Kansas, Wichita, KS 67211
Sedgwick County Courthouse, 525 N. Main, Wichita, KS 67203
Bel Aire City Hall, 7651 E. Central Park, Bel Aire, KS 67226
Maize City Administration, 10100 W. Grady, Maize, KS 67101
Fire Station 32, 7750 Wild West Road, Park City, KS 67147
You can also snail-mail your ballot to the Sedgwick County Election Office, but it has to be postmarked by Election Day and has to arrive by Friday, Aug. 4 to be counted.
The mailing address is Sedgwick County Election Office, 510 N Main St., #101, Wichita, KS 67203.
Where can I find Wichita election results?
The Eagle will have comprehensive coverage of Election Day, including returns Tuesday night at kansas.com.
