YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — With one of the state’s U.S. Senate seats up for grabs, plus the governor’s race and other local issues, there’s a lot of attention on this year’s midterm election in Ohio.
What You Need To Know
- Columbiana County is located in northeast Ohio
- Early voting numbers showed a trend toward double the number of early voters from the 2018 midterm election
- The last day for early voting is Monday, Nov. 7
That has more Ohioans making sure their voices are heard by casting their ballots before Election Day.
In Columbiana County, the voting equipment is unlocked from storage and set up for each day of early voting using a bipartisan buddy system.
“We have one Democrat and one Republican in everything that we do,” said Columbiana County Board of Elections Deputy Director Bryce Miner. “Whether it’s counting ballots, turning on machines, storing anything.”
They’ve had a steady flow of voters each day.
“Just by the number of calls we received, the number of absentee by mail interest we received, we thought it was going to be a higher turnout and it’s proven that way,” Miner said.
Miner said he’s following in his family’s footsteps of service with his role at the Board of Elections.
“My grandfather was a county commissioner, my other grandfather was in the Marines, was a highway patrolman, so it kind of runs in the blood,” he said.
He said he’s excited to be helping voters in his hometown and to see the attention on this year’s election, but not just on the big headline races.
“Whether it’s your school district tax issues, whether it’s just a local issue in your neighborhood, all those things always come down to a vote or two,” he said.
Miner said his office is trending toward seeing double the number of people who voted early in the 2018 midterms and that the increased interest in early voting could be a product of the pandemic.
The office added three part-time positions for this busy time. To help people cast their ballots inside the office and also to process absentee votes arriving by mail.
Miner said the mail-in voter turnout also already surpassed that of the last midterm election.
“One vote makes a difference, whether it’s the small local election or the larger ones, so I think that’s really important to people,” he said.
More than 36,000 Columbiana County voters cast their ballots in the 2018 midterm elections, which is about a 55% voter turnout.
Monday is the last day for early voting across Ohio.
