Three mega-polling places that will allow 81 Logan Countians to vote simultaneously throughout the day will be open in Russellville on Election Day, Nov. 3, according to decisions made by the Logan County Board of Elections recently. Polls will be open for 12 hours.
Additionally, in-person voting will also be available at one of the locations during the previous three weeks.
The sites are the Russellville Recreation Center (commonly known as “the old armory”), the current armory and the Historic Old Courthouse. The Rec Center and courthouse are in sight of each other on Winter Street between West Fourth and West Fifth streets, a block off Carrico Park Square. The “New Armory” is in North Russellville on Armory Drive, not far from Logan County Public Library. No other polling places will be open in Logan County.
This is an especially interesting and crucial election on the national level with control of the White House and the two branches of Congress at stake.
The uniqueness of this election is compounded by the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, many people don’t want to leave home to be a part of crowds. That includes many who have served as election officers for decades, who fear subjecting themselves to the possibility of being infected by voters signing in. This has led to increased interest and demand for absentee voting and a decrease in precincts. In normal years, Logan County has 20 precincts.
A secure dropbox is already in use outside the office of County Clerk Scottie Harper on West Third Street near the old courthouse. Those who have requested and received absentee ballots can deposit their ballots in that box any time of day through Election Day.
Ballots which are mailed must have a postmark of Nov. 3 or before and must be received by 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 6. Those voting by mail are urged to do so as early as possible. Absentee ballots can be requested by contacting Harper’s office of accessing GoVoteKY.com.
The three weeks of early voting will be held Tuesday, Oct. 13, through Monday, Nov. 2. Mondays through Fridays the hours will be 9 a.m.to 4 p.m., and Saturday times will be 9 a.m.-1 p.m. This can be done at the Recreation Center/Old Armory. No reason has to be given for voting early. Any registered voter can use this service for the first time in Logan County history, according to Deputy County Clerk Pam Delaney.
Then on Tuesday, Nov. 3, Election Day will be held from 6 a.m.-6 p.m. at all three voting locations.
The Rec Center will feature 25 private standup booths and one handicap turntable that can accommodate four voters. That provides places for 29 people to vote at any one time. After voters fill in their ballots, they can cast them on one of two scanners plus one handicap-access machine.
Two clerks for check in, two ballot judges, one machine judge, one sheriff, and two cleaning floaters will be working this site. County Clerk Scottie Harper says the workers at all three locations will have “party parity,” with equal representation of Democrats and Republicans.
At the old courthouse, four clerks for check in, two ballot judges, three machine judges, one sheriff, and two cleaning floaters will be working. That’s four more election officials than at the Rec Center because of three different entrances to the courthouse.
This location will have 21 voting standup booths and a handicap standup with room for four people, providing a total of 25 voting capacity at a time with three scanners and one handicap access machine.
The New Armory will feature four clerks for check in, two ballot judges, two machine judges, one sheriff, and two floaters. There will be 25 voting standup booths and a two-handicap tabletop for a total capacity of 27 at a time. Two scanners and one handicap access machine will be available.
County Clerk Harper is chairman of the election commission. The other members are Sheriff Stephen Stratton, former county Clerk Kenny Chapman representing Democrats, and minister Rob Johnson representing the Republican party.
Deadlines announced.
The last day to request an absentee ballot will be Friday, Oct. 9, at midnight.
The last day to register to vote is Monday, Oct. 5, at 4 p.m. Anyone with questions about their registration status can call County Clerk Harper’s office at 270-726-9622.