Calling all voters: Now’s the time to cast your ballot. To ensure that mailed ballots are received in time to be counted, the state Office of Elections advises that ballots go into the mailbox three to five days before the Aug. 8 Primary Election. So the clock starts ticking from today.

Of course, your ballot can be personally dropped off at one of eight Voter Service Centers (on Oahu, Honolulu Hale or Kapolei Hale), or at one of the bright-yellow depositories set up throughout the state. For more info, see elections.hawaii.gov/voter-service-centers-and-places-of-deposit. Make sure you’re counted: Vote today.

UH makes progress on vaccine

There are times when the value of medical research isn’t apparent until it becomes obvious.

The University of Hawaii’s medical school developed an antigen technology platform for use in an Ebola vaccine. In March, UH announced it was working on a COVID-19 vaccine built on the same platform. And on Tuesday, it reported progress: a vaccine candidate that generated a swift immune response in mice.

Other potential vaccines are in clinical trials with human subjects. UH isn’t there yet. But the more candidates the better, especially when what’s needed is the kind of vaccine UH hopes to produce: a safe, inexpensive one that can easily be distributed where needed — in this case, everywhere in the world.