Voter turnout in the Mahoning Valley for the upcoming election should exceed 50 percent, local boards of elections directors say.
Early voting for the Nov. 8 election starts Wednesday.
Voters will come out in this election to cast ballots largely in the U.S. Senate matchup between Democrat Tim Ryan and Republican J.D. Vance and the governor’s race between incumbent Republican Mike DeWine and Democrat Nan Whaley, the officials said. There also is interest in certain local races and issues, they said.
“We’ll be close to 54 percent,” said Tom McCabe, director of the Mahoning County Board of Elections. “We’re getting a lot of requests for absentee ballots. We’re seeing this statewide with high volumes of absentee requests.”
Stephanie Penrose, director of the Trumbull County Board of Elections, expects turnout to be about 55 percent though she said it could be higher.
“This will be a real busy election,” she said. “Get out there and vote, and make my projection too low.”
PAST ELECTIONS
These predictions align with the 2018 election, the last time all of the statewide executive branch seats were on the ballot as well as a contested U.S. Senate race.
Turnout that year was 53.84 percent in Trumbull and 54.72 percent in Mahoning.
In the 2014 election, the prior year with all of the statewide executive branch positions on the ballot but no Senate race, turnout in Trumbull was 40.81 percent and 41.51 percent in Mahoning.
“We’ll be more with 2018’s number because of the Senate race,” McCabe said. “The Senate race is a big draw. People also come out for the governor’s race and the statewides. There’s much more interest in the general election than in the primary.”
Penrose said the governor’s race is attracting interest because of DeWine’s re-election bid.
“There will be Republicans who defect and Democrats who cross over to support him because of the way he handled COVID,” she said. “People love him for it or hate him for it.”
Among local races of interest, McCabe cited contests for the county’s two state House seats and for state Senate.
In Trumbull County, the tax levies on the ballot, particularly for new money, also will attract voters, Penrose said.
Additional tax levies are on ballots in Bristol, Brookfield, Howland townships; the village of Newton Falls, and two in the Lakeview school district. There’s also a countywide park district additional levy.
EARLY VOTING HOURS
Early in-person voting is 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Friday as well as Oct. 17 to 21 and Oct. 24 to 28. It is 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 29, a Saturday.
It is 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 31 to Nov. 4.
Early voting on Nov. 5, the Saturday before the May 3 primary, is 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
It is 1 to 5 p.m. Nov. 6 and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 7.
“We’re going to have a lot of people voting early,” Penrose said.
There also could be an issue with some voters confused as the Ohio secretary of state sent all registered voters an application to cast ballots by mail that had to be submitted to county boards of elections, Penrose said.
“What we’ll get is a lot of people who didn’t realize they applied for an absentee ballot and then they’ll come out to vote,” she said.
McCabe said he expects the first few days of early voting to be busy.
“We always do very well to start,” he said. “It’s easy to vote that way and very convenient.”
The Mahoning early voting center is at Oakhill Renaissance Place, 345 Oak Hill Ave., Youngstown.
The Trumbull board is again renting space at a vacant building at 2911 Youngstown Warren Road SE, Warren, for its early voting center. It is next door to the board offices.
Polling locations are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Nov. 8.
REGISTRATION DEADLINE
County election boards in Ohio will remain open until 9 p.m. Tuesday to allow people to register to vote in the general election. It’s the last day to register for that election for those who aren’t already registered voters.
The Trumbull office is at 2947 Youngstown Road SE, Warren.
The Mahoning office is at Oakhill Renaissance Place, 345 Oak Hill Ave., Youngstown.
To register in person, you need either your driver’s license number or the last four digits of your Social Security number.
People also can register online at voteohio.gov, the Ohio secretary of state’s website, by Monday.