NEWPORT, Ky. — Kentucky counties have been prepping for the general election, and officials said they’re ready for it. Campbell County has already had 30,000 mail-in and early votes.
“Vote. Just vote. Whatever you have to do. Be there. Make your voice heard,” Campbell County resident Micha O’Conner said. “This is your chance.”
She was registered in Boone County up until three weeks ago. As soon as she was registered in Campbell County, she requested her ballot immediately. Monday evening, she dropped it into the drop box.
“Most important, first and foremost in my mind, is the safety of myself [amid] the pandemic,” O’Conner said. “I wanted to still feel like I was close enough to the action. So, I waited until the last day, but still didn’t have to wait in line.”
Campbell County Clerk Jim Luersen said he doesn’t anticipate long lines on Election Day. One reason for that, he said, is the extended voting period.
“We want everything to be nice, smooth, easy and quiet,” Luersen said.
He said they’ve been busy all three weeks of early voting.
“It started out busy, and just got busier every day,” Luersen said.
He said they typically get 40,000 people who cast their vote in a presidential election.
“We’ve already processed 30,000 ballots,” Luersen said. “If we have a much bigger turnout we’ve ever had in the history of Campbell County, we’ve already processed two-thirds of the voters.”
Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties all have different polling locations.
There are 45 polling spots in Campbell County and 23 in Kenton County. Boone County has 10 "super polls," meaning Boone County residents can vote at any of the polling locations there.
“I’m dressed and ready to go to the gym,” O’Conner said. “I knew I could swing by on my way and drop it off. And fit it into my daily life.”
She said she hopes future elections will continue early voting.
“I feel like this should be the norm,” O’Conner said. “If it took a pandemic to make voting easy and more accessible, then so be it. I welcome the change.”
