Allen County voters have their last chance to cast an early ballot Sunday, Nov. 1, when the Allen County Board of Elections in Lima is open from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. for the final day of early in-person voting before the Tuesday, Nov. 3 general election, according to the board’s published election schedule.
The board, at 204 N. Main St. in Lima, has run early voting since Oct. 6 under the uniform statewide hours set by the Ohio Secretary of State. Sunday’s four-hour window — 1 to 5 p.m. — is the last early session anywhere in Ohio; there is no early in-person voting on Monday, Nov. 2, and voters who have not cast a ballot by Sunday night vote at their assigned polling place on Election Day.
Allen County’s Nov. 3 ballot is a familiar one to longtime Lima-area voters, topped by a rare contested county commissioner race alongside the statewide races — governor, attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor, the Supreme Court seats and U.S. Senator — and State Issue 3, the proposed photo ID constitutional amendment. NewsForce247’s first-pass Allen County preview in October walked through the commissioner contest and the levies voters across the county will decide.
Absentee voters face a hard deadline this year. Ballots returned by mail or dropped off must be received by the board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3, to be counted — Ohio no longer counts ballots that arrive after Election Day, and the Columbus Dispatch reported voters are being urged to drop ballots off in person rather than risk mail delays this close to the deadline. The board’s secure drop-off is at its 204 N. Main St. office in Lima.
Voters heading to Lima on Sunday should bring a valid photo ID, as Ohio law requires for early in-person and Election Day voting alike. Anyone unsure of their registration status, their Election Day polling place or what is on their specific ballot can check with the Allen County Board of Elections at (419) 223-8530 or through the Secretary of State’s voter tools at VoteOhio.gov.
What happens next: early voting ends at 5 p.m. Sunday. Polls across Allen County open Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and unofficial results will be posted by the board of elections after polls close Tuesday night.