by Haley Leigh
The 2020 election has doubled the numbers of early voters compared to normal general elections.
“We’ve had 1,000 people vote in the last three days, including Saturday,” said Chris Carithers, chief deputy election commissioner for Douglas County.
During a regular general election, two-thirds of voters come in on Election Day and vote at the polls while only 1/3 of voters vote early or by mail. This year, those numbers have reversed,Carithers said.
“Covid is probably 80% of the reason the numbers are that high,” Carithers said. “To keep the place safe, we have mailed out nearly 167,000 ballots.”
Mail-in ballots allows voters to avoid large crowds and stay safe while still voting in the general election. To promote mail-in voting, the Douglas County Election Commission sent cards to every registered voter that allowed them to easily request mail-in ballots.
“In Nebraska you have to request a ballot, all [the voters] had to do was sign the card and mail it back in to request their ballot,” Carithers said.
Precautions are also being taken in the voting polls to ensure the safest in-person voting experience. All poll workers will wear gloves, masks and face shields. Sanitary wipes and bleach or disinfectant will be used to wipe down surfaces on a regular basis.
The polls will have masks available for voters if they do not have one, and each voter will get a pen that they can use and then take home, pens will not be recycled.
Voters can expect hand sanitizer anywhere they need to touch a surface as well as the entrance and exits. Voters can also expect short wait times the day of the election.
Carithers said voters can expect to vote in under 15 minutes, with a few peak times during the day when people are going to work, leaving work, and on lunch break.
Early voters had to wait an average of three to three and a half hours to vote, with the longest wait times being upwards of five hours due to an Oct. 30 power outage.
