CLEVELAND — Early voting begins Tuesday ahead of next month’s municipal primaries throughout Cuyahoga County.
A number of cities in the county are having mayoral and city council races. The primaries will whittle the field of candidates for November’s general election.
One of the top races in the county will be the one to replace Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson who opted to not run for reelection after four terms in office. A field of seven are vying to replace Jackson. On Sept. 14, the field of seven will be reduced to two following the primary.
The second of two mayoral debates featuring the seven Cleveland candidates will be held Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
Cleveland Heights is set to vote on its first elected mayor after a change to city charter. Four candidates from the city of over 45,000 are running for the open seat.
According to the city of Cleveland Heights, the elected mayor will oversee executive responsibilities for managing city government. Currently, Cleveland Heights City Council appoints a city manager to oversee operations of the city.
Generally, turnout for municipal primaries are light. The September 2017 primaries had a turnout of 13.2% of Cuyahoga County registered voters. The September 2013 primaries drew a turnout of 9.7%.
A full list of races are available on the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections website.
In-person early voting is open at the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections office on weekdays Aug. 17 to Sept. 3 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sept. 7-10 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The Board of Elections will have weekend hours on Sept. 11 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sept. 12 from 1-5 p.m. The final day of in-person early voting is Sept. 13 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Voters can also obtain a form for a mail-in ballot on the Board of Elections website.
