Voters have begun casting their ballots for the February special election in Washington. All mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and require first-class postage. Registered voters can also drop off their ballots until 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at the Wahkiakum County Auditor's Office.

People who wish to vote but aren't yet registered can register in person until Feb. 3 at the Wahkiakum County Auditor's Office.

Elections will be held in 36 counties and 220 districts, encompassing about 59 percent of those counties’ registered voters and over half of the state’s voting population. This is a significant increase compared to last year’s February election, which involved 31 percent of state voters, said Patty Murphy, a voting systems specialist for the Office of Secretary of State’s Elections Division.

Ballot measures center primarily on education funding this year, as is the case for Wahkiakum County. Out of 283 measures, 270 are school district levies or bonds, almost tripling last year’s 100 measures in 84 districts.

The only counties not having an election are Clallam, Ferry and Garfield counties.