Van Wert County voters have one last chance to cast a ballot early today, Sunday, Nov. 1, as early in-person voting for the Nov. 3 general election closes at 5 p.m. at the county board of elections, 1362 East Ervin Road in Van Wert, under the Ohio Secretary of State’s statewide voting schedule.
Early in-person voting began Oct. 6 and ran through the final weekend before Election Day, with hours of 1 to 5 p.m. today, according to the Secretary of State’s 2026 voting schedule. There is no early voting on Monday, Nov. 2 — the next chance to vote after today’s 5 p.m. close is at precinct polling places on Tuesday.
County races on the Van Wert County ballot are largely unopposed this cycle, as NewsForce247 reported in its first-pass look at the county, which means many courthouse offices will be settled by the voters who turn out for the statewide races and local questions sharing the ballot.
Those statewide contests are topped by the governor’s race between Democrat Amy Acton and Republican Vivek Ramaswamy and the U.S. Senate race between Democrat Sherrod Brown and Republican Jon Husted, along with State Issue 3, the proposed constitutional amendment writing Ohio’s photo ID requirement for voting into the constitution, according to The Columbus Dispatch’s election coverage.
Voters holding absentee ballots should not rely on the mail at this point. Under Senate Bill 293, signed by Gov. Mike DeWine in December 2025, absentee ballots must arrive by the close of polls on Election Day to be counted, with an exception for military and overseas voters — the old post-Election Day grace period is gone, The Columbus Dispatch reported. Secretary of State Frank LaRose said on Oct. 27 that it might already be too late to mail a ballot and have it arrive in time, according to Cleveland.com reporting cited by The Columbus Dispatch.
The safer route is hand delivery: an absentee ballot can be dropped off at the Van Wert County Board of Elections, 1362 East Ervin Road, Van Wert, and it must be received by 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, according to The Columbus Dispatch’s county drop-off listing.
On Election Day, polls across Van Wert County are open Tuesday from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., per the Secretary of State’s schedule. Voters who have not cast an early or absentee ballot should bring an acceptable photo ID and vote at their designated precinct polling place.