Election officials in three counties in the middle of the Finger Lakes region say they have seen stunning turnout over the first three days of early voting.
Officials in Cayuga, Ontario, and Seneca counties all confirmed record turnout over the weekend, which continued into Monday.
“We have been swamped,” Carl Same said of turnout in Seneca County. He’s the Democratic commissioner for the Board of Elections there. “Seneca County has never seen this turnout before.”
Hundreds turned out to cast ballots on Saturday and Sunday. The trend continued on Monday with 150 ballots being completed within the first few hours of the day. “I expected it to be very busy and it surely was,” Same added. “The longest wait time was on Saturday with some waiting over an hour to cast their ballots, but things went very well with ballot on demand printing. Everyone was patient and appreciative.”
He expected consistent turnout through the remainder of early voting.
In Ontario County, Republican commissioner Michael Northrup said that this is a completely unique experience for him. “I can’t compare this election process with anything going on in my 20 years,” he told 13WHAM. “It’s been an incredible turnout.”
To that end, they received more voters in three locations in one day than Ontario County did in the entire 2019 election process.
Meanwhile, election officials in Cayuga County told The Citizen while there was a wait when polling sites opened up, things went smoothly — and turnout was significant. In fact, 4.13% of all voters had casted ballots in the first two days of early voting. That was among the highest percentage turnouts in the state. In fact, Yates County was one of the few that outpaced Cayuga in that category – signaling another major local turnout statistic.
There are still several days left of early voting. Check your local board of elections’ website for updated information about where early voting is happening near you.
https://twitter.com/AndrewWHAM/status/1320755853650255874?s=20
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to [email protected]