Arizona's primary election comes to a conclusion on Tuesday, Aug. 4, when both Democrats and Republicans will make decide which nominees are moving forward to the Nov. 3 general election.
If you want to skip the crowds when it comes to voting on Tuesday, you have a lot of options when it comes to casting an early ballot. The Pima County Recorder's Office has opened up a bunch of early voting centers that are open during the day except Sunday. (Check the County Recorder's website for exact hours). Locations include: the Pima County Recorder's Office Main Office (240 N. Stone Ave.), the Recorder's Eastside Annex (6920 E. Broadway), the Recorder's Ballot Processing Center (6550 S. Country Club Road), the Oro Valley Library (1305 W. Naranja Drive), the Pima County Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation Building (3500 W. River Road), Woods Library (3455 N. First Ave.), Wheeler Taft Library (7800 N. Schisler Drive), Miller Golf Links Library (9640 E. Golf Links Road), Kirk Bear Canyon Library (8959 E. Tanque Verde Road), Mission Library (3770 S. Miission Road), the Good Shepherd UCC (17750 S. La Canada in Green Valley), TOKA Community Building (51 Baboquivari Circle in Sells) and—for Ajo residents only—the Salazar Ajo Library (33 Plaza St. in Ajo.)
If you have a mail-in ballot you haven't sent back yet, you're better off dropping it off in person on or before Election Day at one of the early voting centers or at your polling place.
Need a COVID Test?
Pima County residents have new opportunities for COVID testing, antibody testing and even a vaccine trial
If you're interested in getting
a COVID test, an antibody test or being part of a vaccine trial, you've got new options in Pima County.
The Pima County Health Department announced this week that it would open a second testing center on Wednesday, July 29.
The free saliva testing for COVID-19 at the Ellie Towne Flowing Wells Community Center, 1660 W. Ruthrauff Road, requires pre-registration and is conducted by Arizona State University in partnership with the Arizona Department of Health Services. Pima County continues to run a free COVID-19 testing site via nasal swabs at Kino Event Center and is working on plans to open a third testing center at Udall Park on the City of Tucson's east side.
The testing is by appointment only. To register for a test, go to pima.gov/covid19testing.
Meanwhile, Pima County is one of several regions in the country where a new COVID-19 vaccine is being tested. The National Institutes of Health is conducting phase 3 trials on a vaccine co-developed by Moderna, Inc. and the National Insitute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. If you're interested in volunteering, visit www.coronaviruspreventionnetwork.org or ClinicalTrials.gov and search identifier NCT04470427 to find a study center.
Meanwhile, if you're looking for an antibody test to find out if you've already had COVID-19, the University of Arizona and the State of Arizona have expanded their free antibody testing program to include 15 new categories of essential workers considered at high risk for exposure. The antibody test, developed by researchers at UA Health Sciences, determines who has been exposed to and developed an immune response against COVID-19
In addition to healthcare workers and first responders, the following workers are eligible for antibody testing educators, childcare workers, agriculture, grocery and foodservice workers, hospitality employees, solid waste collection workers, transportation services workers and members of the National Guard
More information and registration for the test is available at covid19antibodytesting.arizona.edu. ■
