There are seven days left to apply for an absentee ballot for the upcoming U.S. Senate special runoff election, which will determine whether Roy Moore or Luther Strange will be the Republican frontrunner for state Senate.

Thursday, Sept. 21, is the last day to apply for an absentee ballot in that race.

Under state law, the absentee voting application (which is separate from the ballot) must be turned in no later than five calendar days before the election. In this case, the runoff is Sept. 26. Limestone County Circuit Clerk Brad Curnutt, the county’s absentee election manager, cannot accept ballot applications that arrive late by mail and he cannot allow late applications in person at the courthouse.

Five people who had hoped to vote absentee in the U.S. Senate special primary election had to be turned away simply because they missed the deadline, Curnutt said.

Easy way

The easiest way to vote absentee is to come to the Circuit Clerk’s Office on the first floor of the Limestone County Courthouse in downtown Athens. There, you can apply for an absentee ballot and cast the ballot in the same trip.

If you cannot make it to the courthouse, you have two other options:

• Call Curnutt’s office at 256-233-6406 or 256-216-3875 and ask him to mail you an absentee ballot application. When the application arrives by mail, fill it out and return it to:

Honorable Brad Curnutt, Circuit Court Clerk

First Floor, Limestone County Courthouse

200 W. Washington St., Athens, AL 35611; or

• Go online to www.votelimestone.com, print the absentee ballot application and mail it to Curnutt’s office.

“Don’t let it sit on the kitchen counter because you won’t have time to do that and make the deadline,” Curnutt said.

Who can vote absentee?

If you will be unable to cast a ballot at the polls on Sept. 26, you can cast an absentee ballot as long as you are a registered voter who meets the requirements to vote absentee. A voter may cast an absentee ballot if he or she:

• Will be absent from the county on election day;

• Is ill or has a physical disability that prevents a trip to the polling place;

• Is a registered Alabama voter living outside the county, such as a member of the armed forces, a voter employed outside the United States, a college student, or a spouse or child of such a person;

• Is an appointed election officer or poll watcher at a polling place other than his or her regular polling place; or

• Works a required shift — 10 hours or more — that coincides with polling hours.

Why the special election?

A special Senate election is being held to fill the unexpired term of former state Sen. Jeff Sessions, who was appointed United States attorney general. A special primary election was held Aug. 15 to elect one Republican and one Democrat to face each other in the Dec. 12 special general election to decide who will be senator. However, the top two Republican vote-getters — Moore and Strange — failed to garner more than 50 percent of the vote and win the Republican primary outright. So, a special runoff election will be held Sept. 26 so Republican voters can choose Moore or Strange. The winner will face Democrat Doug Jones on Dec. 12.