Your Monday evening update on Salem news

Good evening, Salem.
Tomorrow is election day, which means right now is the best time to fill out your ballot if you haven’t yet.
Ballots are due at 8 p.m. sharp on Tuesday, May 19.
Anything postmarked by that time will still be counted, so long as they arrive by mail to the clerk’s office within the week. This close to the deadline, election officials recommend dropping ballots straight into a drop box to avoid any headaches.
See a map of all the ballot drop sites in Marion County here. The Marion County Clerk’s office is operating a drive-thru drop box outside its office in downtown Salem, at 555 Court Street N.E.
See Polk County’s ballot drop sites here.
Want to do more research ahead of filling out your ballot? Catch up on our city election coverage here. We’ve interviewed every council candidate, the candidates for Polk County Commissioner position 3 and have done deep dives on both mayoral campaigns.
Here is the count of ballots returned as of around 8 a.m. on Monday, May 18.
- Marion County – 43,999 ballots; 233,757 registered voters; 18.8% return
- Polk County – 13,838 ballots; 64,918 registered voters; 21.3% return
- Oregon – 616,721 ballots; 3,103,717 registered voters; 19.9% return
We’ll be posting election results as soon as possible tomorrow night. Stay tuned.
Here’s some of today’s news. Head to our website anytime for the latest in Salem.
An annual silent bike ride around Salem remembers cyclists who were seriously injured or killed while riding while raising awareness of traffic safety. Anyone is welcome to join. To comment…
Jim Sellers, former Oregon journalist and state agency employee, writes a regular column to help thousands in Salem deal with the confusing world of Medicare and federal benefits. He’s available…
Thousands of students crossed the finish line at Bush’s Pasture Park to raise money for their schools in the annual Awesome 3000 fun run. See photos from the day here.…
There’s still time to cast votes in the Tuesday, May 19 election which will decide who leads the city of Salem. Here’s a roundup of who’s on the ballot. To…

READERS REACT: “Tears in my eyes. This is confirmation that a well thought-out partnership of compassionate, experienced adults with faith in the can change the trajectory of the community, individual by individual. I hope that other community leaders will be inspired by this story to initiate their own similar partnerships. Now, how about something for the girls?” -Jinglebell, on Madeleine Moore’s report on new violence intervention meetings starting with teens in Salem.
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