Town Clerks throughout the area are seeing a large turnout of early and absentee ballots for the upcoming presidential election Tuesday, Nov. 8.
Halifax Town Clerk Barbara Gaynor said has just over 5% of her town’s registered voters have come in for early voting and absentee ballot requests. “I see that the elderly are finding it easier – they don’t have to wait in long lines.” In the first two days, Monday and Tuesday, Halifax has had 145 people in for early voting and 140 absentee ballot requests, for a total of 285. “The first day we saw 75 early voters in eight hours. That’s about 10 voters per hour. “
Plympton’s Town Clerk Tara Shaw said that in the first two days 86 early voters cast their ballots, and 60 absentee ballots were mailed. “I was hoping this would be a success because of all the hard work we have all put into it for the past couple of weeks,” she said. With the 146 ballots between early and absentee, morer than 2% of the registered voters have already cast their ballots.
Gaynor said she is glad she is working in a smaller town, “Some larger towns have seen a huge increase in early voting.” “We have our closed facebook page and communicate with one another,” she said.
Whitman’s early voting total in the first two days was almost 600, more than the entire voting total for the primary election in September which was only 347, according to Whitman’s Town Clerk Dawn Varley.
Early voting will continue through Friday, Nov. 4, throughout the Commonwealth.
In Halifax, it will be available during normal business hours for the Town Clerk at the Town Clerk’s office: Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Friday, Nov. 4, from 8 a.m. to 12 noon. In Plympton, it will be Monday, Oct. 31, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Tuesday through Thursday, Nov. 1 to Nov. 3, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Also, registered voters have the option to request an early voting ballot through the mail. Simply fill out an application and mail it to Town Clerk, Town of Plympton, 5 Palmer Rd., Plympton, MA 02367. In Halifax, mail your early voting ballot request to Town Clerk’s Office, 499 Plymouth St., Halifax, MA 02338.
You can find the application on the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s website: http://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele or call the Town Clerk’s office – 781-293-7970 for Halifax or 781-585-3220 for Plympton.
Please note, however, once a voter has cast an early voting ballot, the voter may no longer vote at the polls on Election Day.
Secretary of State William F. Galvin says,, “For the first time in Massachusetts, the first choice all voters will make is which day to vote.
“Early voting will make the most fundamental right of our citizens more convenient than ever to exercise.
“We encourage all of our citizens to exercise that right and take advantage of the opportunity to vote on their schedules.”