DECISION DAY FOR VOTERS

Subhead

Polls open June 9 for unprecedented elections cycle for county and city

Image
  • White County voters have already been busy with greater participation than usual in absentee balloting, as well as taking part in early in-person voting, which continues through this Friday, June 5. (File photo/Stephanie HIll)
    White County voters have already been busy with greater participation than usual in absentee balloting, as well as taking part in early in-person voting, which continues through this Friday, June 5. (File photo/Stephanie HIll)
Body

After delays and confusion related to the COVID-19 pandemic, election day will finally arrive Tuesday, June 9.

The unprecedented circumstances have actually led to two separate countywide elections being held at the same time, along with a pair of Cleveland special elections.

The Presidential Preference Primary and Cleveland mayoral race were originally set for March 24 before being moved to the May primaries due to the coronavirus pandemic. With this move, it put those races at the same time as city, county, state and federal races. These elections were postponed once again to June 9.

Cleveland residents could potentially vote in two races, for mayor and for the Ward 2 city council seat, since the municipal elections are at-large. However, those who voted for mayor in March during the first round of voting can only vote for the Ward 2 election now. Annie Sutton and Josh Turner are running for mayor, while Felicia Sutton and Rebecca Yardley are vying for the Ward 2 post.

Cleveland City Hall will be closed Tuesday so city staff can work the election. Voting will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at First Baptist Church in Cleveland, at 25 Church St.

Countywide elections will be held at regular polling places from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. In general primary for county, state and federal offices, voters will choose one of three ballots: Republican, Democrat and Non-Partisan. Because all local races feature only Republican candidates (and therefore appear only on the Republican ballot), these will be decided in the June primary since there will not be a contested race in the November general election.

Local races on the ballot include sheriff, probate judge, White County Board of Education chairman and White County Board of Commissioners – District 1. There are also several state and congressional races on the Republican ballot. The Republican ballot also has a couple questions for voters to answer. For the Presidential Preference Primary, President Donald Trump is the only Republican candidate on the ballot for those who have not yet voted in the PPP.

For the Democratic ballot, there are several state and federal races, along with a few Democratic Party questions. Even though Joe Biden is the only Democratic presidential candidate with an active campaign, other candidates will still appear on the ballot for those voters who did not previously cast a ballot in that race.

Those who already voted in the Presidential Preference Primary in March won’t see it on the ballot this time.

In regards to the non-partisan ballot, there are no local contested races on that ballot. There are several judicial judge races, including Judge, Superior Court for the Enotah Judicial Circuit and Chief Magistrate.

One question that is on every ballot is the White County Board of Education ESPLOST (Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) vote. White County residents will vote yes or no on whether to renew a 1% sales tax for education. The current ESPLOST expires Dec. 31, 2022, and the new one would begin in 2023 if voters approved its renewal. Under the proposed ESPLOST renewal, the school system is looking at several projects, including building a new performing arts center at White County High School, a transportation facility, relocating and improving the athletic fields and more.

Sample ballots can be found by visiting the My Voter Page on the Georgia Secretary of State’s website. Enter some information, and then you can see the sample ballots, your voting precinct and more.


Precautions in place for voters, staff

 

When it comes to county voting on Election Day, there will be several precautions in place to keep poll workers and voters safe.

Poll workers will be wearing masks, and if a voter wants to wear one, they will have to bring their own. If a voter wants to wear gloves, they will also have to bring their own. There will be hand sanitizer for all voters to use and the precincts will be sanitized several times throughout the day, said White County Chief Voter Registrar Lisa Manning.