October 31, 2012

The new voter ID law in Virginia, which took effect earlier this summer, just doesn't change how people vote -- it also changes when the official results of the election will be released.

"I don't really know, since this is the first time really that the ID law has been into affect, what it's going to do," Charlottesville registrar Sheri Iachetta said.

When Virginia's voter ID law went into effect, it wiped out the affirmation of identity, the alternative for voters who didn't have an ID with them. The signature would allow the person to vote.

"We won't know the final results in Charlottesville until sometime Friday afternoon, we hope," Iachetta said.

That's because anyone who doesn't have a form of ID would fill out a provisional ballot, which is set aside and put into a locked ballot box until that voter provides an ID. The voter must provide that ID to the registrar by no later than Friday, Nov. 9, which could create drama in a significant swing state.

"It could be substantial, depending upon how many provisional ID ballots there are," Iachetta said.

In 2008, 142 Charlottesville voters did not have an ID at the polls and signed the affirmation of identity. In this year's election, those 142 voters would have to cast provisional ballots.

"It's not like it's being hidden from anybody, but it's not widely known," Iachetta said. "And it's going to be a long three days."

The official election results should be completed by Friday afternoon, or possibly later that weekend.

As of Wednesday, more than 2,500 people in Charlottesville have cast an absentee ballot. The last day to cast an absentee ballot is Saturday, and all registrar's offices in the state will be open from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. until then.