Polls open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday for 2024 election

ALBANY – For those who haven’t heard, there’s an election on Tuesday. But for many Georgians and voters across the country, that item has been ticked off the to-do list with record early voting in many places.

In Lee County, Election Supervisor Veronica Johnson was looking at half or more of registered voters casting early votes either in-person or via mail-in ballots.

Friday was the final day of early voting ahead of the Tuesday general election across the state. For the general election, voters should go to their precinct, not the early voting location. Voters can check their precinct location and find sample ballots at the Georgia secretary of state’s https://mvp.sos.ga.gov/s/ website.

“As of Thursday we were at 11,728 (in-person) voters,” Johnson said. “That’s a really good turnout for advance voting. That would be close to 50% with absentee voting right now.”

Those totals did not include Friday’s tally of votes. With mail-in ballots added to the mix, the total through Thursday came to 12,265.

The number is close to the 54% early and mail-in voter turnout for 2020, when early voting totaled 10,240.

And, Johnson said, the big numbers this year came with no significant local races on voters’ ballots.

“I’d like to think that if we end the day with 50%, we can have 25% (more) on Election Day,” Johnson said. “In 2020 we had a 73.24% turnout. For the 2016 general election, we had an 80% turnout. I’d like to hit 80% again, but I’m hoping for 75%.”

The end result is that the large turnout ahead of the election should reduce the number who are waiting in line on Tuesday.

There may be brief periods when there is a wait, but for the most part Johnson anticipates voters will move through the line quickly throughout the day.

“We are typically busy between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. with people trying to vote before they go to work, then we have (a rush of) people at lunch time,” she said. “Just steady all day long is a good thing.

“We’re just hoping for a safe election and that winners are happy and losers are satisfied everything was transparent and fair. (I) just pray for peace and understanding for everybody involved in the process.”

Due to the Veterans Day holiday on Nov. 11 voting officials across the state will certify the election on Nov. 12.

Early voting in Dougherty County also was brisk, averaging about 1,000 per day through the three-week period.

About 18,000 of the county’s voters had cast early ballots through Thursday, compared to the 2020 total of 13,000 during the early voting period, Dougherty County Election Supervisor Ginger Nickerson said.

There are about 68,000 registered voters in the county.

One change that voters should be aware of is that, due to remodeling at the Phoebe East Convenient Care location, those voters will vote on Tuesday at the Turner Elementary School gym. Signage has been placed at the Phoebe location alerting voters of the change, Nickerson said.

Like Johnson, Nickerson said she expects that there could be some periods when there is a line at some polling locations during Election Day. Early morning and later in the afternoon may be two times when lines are longer.

“Election Day is different because we open at 7 a.m.,” Nickerson said. “We have a lot of people who vote before they go to work. A lot of people will vote after they get off work.”

Having the options to vote early in-person by mail and then on Election Day gives voters flexibility, she said.

The county’s voting precincts will be well-staffed and ready for voters on the big day, Nickerson said.

“We’ll have our team prepared to provide the same service we provided during advance voting,” she said.

In Georgia, more than 4 million voters had cast ballots by the end of early voting.

File Photo: Alan MauldinAlanMauldin[email protected]
https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f714026fc83d6150ab9a4350b4169940?s=100&d=mm&r=g