Ramsey County opened four more early voting locations on Friday, in advance of a closely watched Nov. 5 election.

In-person, absentee voting began Sept. 20 at the Ramsey County Elections office at 90 Plato Blvd. in St. Paul. Additional voting sites were scheduled to open Friday at the Arlington Hills Community Center, 1200 Payne Ave., the Frogtown Community Center at 230 Como Ave., the Ramsey County Library in Roseville at 2180 Hamline Ave. N., and the Ramsey County Library in Shoreview at 4560 Victoria St. N.

With the exception of Maplewood City Hall, Ramsey County voters may vote before Election Day at any absentee voting site in the county, regardless of their home address. Ballots do not need to be requested in advance.

Voters can submit their absentee ballots from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Nov. 4. Locations will also be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on two Saturdays — Oct. 26 and Nov. 2 — and on Nov. 3, a Sunday.

Polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. Mail and absentee ballots must be received by local election officials by 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Statewide, local election officials had distributed more than 716,000 absentee and mail-in ballots in the four weeks since early voting began on Sept. 20. More than 337,000 ballots have been completed and returned, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State’s office.

That puts “turnout” to date ahead of absentee acceptance totals in the 2016 general election, which Republican and Democratic nominees Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton vied for the presidency. The numbers fall short of the record high absentee voting totals from 2020, when many voters chose to participate by mail-in ballot during the pandemic.

Minnesotans can vote by mail, early in-person and in-person on Election Day. Beginning Friday, some local election offices statewide will offer direct balloting, replicating the Election Day experience by allowing voters to put their ballots directly into ballot tabulators. The machines are tested before every election, certified by the state and federal elections experts and maintained in secure locations.

The deadline to register to vote before Election Day was Oct. 15. Minnesotans can still register to vote on Election Day, if needed. Learn more at sos.state.mn.us/elections-voting.