Lorain County voters are in the final week of early voting for the November 3 general election, with the Lorain County Board of Elections open for extended hours at 1985 North Ridge Road East in Lorain through Sunday, November 1, according to the board and the Ohio Secretary of State’s statewide voting schedule.
Tuesday, October 27 carries two deadlines in one. Early voting runs from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. — the longest day of the early-voting period — and absentee ballot applications must be received by the board by 8:30 p.m. that night. After Tuesday, early voting continues Wednesday through Friday, October 28 to 30, from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., then Saturday, October 31 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, November 1 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., when early voting ends.
Turnout so far has been substantial. The University of Florida’s Election Lab early-vote tracker, which compiles county-reported figures, lists 20,315 in-person early votes cast in Lorain County for the 2026 general election — among the higher totals for a county of its size in Ohio, and a sign that a large share of Lorain County’s electorate is choosing to vote before Election Day.
On the county’s November 3 ballot, voters are weighing a contested commissioner race and a children services levy, alongside statewide races for governor, attorney general, auditor, secretary of state, treasurer, two Ohio Supreme Court seats and U.S. senator, plus statewide Issue 3. Voters can check their own sample ballot through the board’s voter lookup before they go.
Voters who requested a ballot by mail face a hard return rule this year. Under Ohio’s current schedule, a mailed absentee ballot must be received by the board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, November 3 — a postmark alone is not enough. Voters can also return a ballot in person, or through a near relative, to the board office or its secure drop box by that same deadline.
The board office will also be open for ballot curing from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. November 4 through November 7, as required by Ohio Secretary of State Directive 2026-10, for voters notified that their ballot needs additional information to be counted.
Election Day itself is Tuesday, November 3, when precinct polling places across Lorain County — from Lorain and Elyria to Amherst, Avon Lake, Oberlin and Wellington — are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Anyone in line by 7:30 p.m. can vote. Board information, sample ballots and precinct lookups are available at voteloraincountyohio.gov.