With the Tuesday noon deadline looming for the special election in Salina which will decide if the ordinance which bans pit bull dogs will be repealed, a little over 30 percent of ballots which were sent out have been returned.

Saline County Clerk Jamie Doss tells KSAL News as of late Monday afternoon 8,700 ballots have been returned out of the 27,112 sent which were mailed to registered voters who live within the Salina city limits.

There is one question on the ballot, asking if the pit bull ordinance should be repealed. A “yes” vote is to repeal the current ordinance thus making pit bulls legal, a “no” vote is to not change the ordinance and keep the breed ban in place.

Doss says the deadline for ballots to be returned is Tuesday February 24th at noon, with no exceptions. Ballots which not already been mailed can dropped off at the Saline County Clerk’s Office, or deposited in the secure drop box outside the Salina City County Building right up until noon Tuesday. No late ballots will be accepted.

There are a few things to remember. Each must be returned in the envelope which arrived with it, and the envelope must be signed. Doss says her office reached out to several voters about issues with their ballots which had been returned and urges them to make sure they have the error corrected by noon. Voters can check the status of their ballot on the Kansas Secretary of State’s Voter View Website . 

The pit bull ban in Salina was enacted by the Salina City Commission in 2004.

In December of 2019 the issue was revisited again. At that time Salina City Commissioners voted 3 – 2 to not overturn the breed specific ordinance which makes the dog illegal to have within city limits.

On October 27, 2025, a petition to repeal the pit bull dog ban in Salina was presented to the Salina City Manager’s Office. After it was validated the special election was triggered.

Doss anticipates election results to be available by around 3:00 Tuesday afternoon.