Pace of voting brisk (10/07/2008)

Numbers are sharply up as people registered to vote and cast ballots on the last day of registration and the first day of early voting Monday.

In the Jay County Clerk's Office, Ellen Coats said they received a major increase in the number of last minute voters compared to past years.

"At least 100," she said. "I would say a couple hundred." Coats didn't have exact numbers on hand, as she's still working on the healthy stack of voter registrations at her desk this morning, but said she was farther behind at the end of the day than she was when she came into the office Monday morning.

Down in the voting room at the courthouse, poll workers saw 33 voters come in and cast ballots on the first day of early polling, almost all of those before 3:30 p.m. when things tailed off in the afternoon.

Jay County Clerk Jane Ann Runyon said the voting numbers show an increased importance for this election. In past years, she said, only a handful of voters had showed up during the first two weeks of early voting, much less the first day.

Runyon also is advising and poll workers will be reminding voters as they come in to cast ballots to make sure not to miss any questions.

For people punching a straight-party ticket, Runyon is reminding voters to double check so they don't miss the jail expansion referendum or other "yes or no" questions at the end, which are not filled in for a party-punch ballot.

Polls will be open for absentee voting in the courthouse from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The deadline for absentee voting at the courthouse is noon on Monday, Nov. 3.[[In-content Ad]]