MANSFIELD — It’s clear local voters want to make their voices heard on State Issue 1, a proposed constitutional amendment that would make amending the constitution more difficult in the future.
As of Thursday afternoon, 7,317 Richland County residents have taken advantage of early voting that began July 11 — nearly double the amount of voters who participated in the entire 2022 special election cycle.
“It’s been way busier than I would have guessed,” Richland County Board of Elections Director Matt Finfgeld said Friday. “That’s a good thing.”
State Issue 1, placed on the ballot by Republican-led state lawmakers, would increase the difficulty of amending the constitution three months before a pro-choice group plans to have its own amendment issue on the ballot that would loosen abortion laws in Ohio.
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Finfgeld projects that 35 to 40 percent of registered voters in Richland County will participate in the Aug. 8 special election by the time polls close on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. Just 5.52 percent of voters took part in the August 2022 special election.
Of those who have voted early in the board office or returned absentee ballots by mail, there have been 3,033 Republican voters, 1,829 Democrat voters and 2,455 non-partisan voters.
This election may also be bringing out new voters. Finfgeld said 476 new voters have registered in Richland County since June 1.
Finfgeld said early voting usually accounts for a third of all voting during an election cycle and he expects that to be around 12 percent by the time early, in-person voting ends Sunday at 5 p.m.
“I think we will have between 35 and 40 percent voter turnout in this election. That would be great,” he said.
Finfgeld said the board has consolidated some polling locations for this election due to the unavailability of some sites and also to reduce the number of poll workers needed.
“Everyone whose polling location has changed should have received a postcard in the mail informing them of the change,” he said. “And anyone who is being moved to a new voting location will get a card in late August or early September informing them they are being moved back.”
(Click on the PDF on the right to view polling location changes for the Aug. 8 special election.)
Early voting continues through Sunday. The board of elections at 1495 W. Longview Ave. will be open Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
No early, in-person voting is allowed on Monday.
Finfgeld said 300 paper ballots that have been mailed out at the request of voters have not yet been returned.
Those mail-in ballots must be post-marked by Monday and must be received by the local Board of Elections within four days of the election.
“At this point, I would recommend voters bring those ballots to our offices by Monday or Tuesday by 7:30 p.m. They can bring them into the office or place them in the drop box at our facility,” Finfgeld said.
Finfgeld reminded voters that a photo identification is required at the polls, a change in state law that took effect during the May primary.
Ohioans can no longer use utility bills, bank statements, government documents or other forms to prove their identity and cast their vote.
A photo ID such as a driver’s license, state-issued ID card, military ID or passport is required. Finfgeld said Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicle locations will provide a state ID card for free for those who need one.
