Cuyahoga County voters head to their precinct polling places on Tuesday, Nov. 3, after early in-person voting ended at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, according to the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections. There is no early voting on Monday, Nov. 2, and polls on Election Day will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., the board said. The board’s office is at 1803 Superior Ave. in Cleveland, and voters can confirm their information at boe.cuyahogacounty.gov or by calling 216-443-VOTE (8683), according to the board.
Voters who still hold a vote-by-mail ballot must get it to the Board of Elections by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day for it to count, according to the board. Under Ohio’s newer return rule, most absentee ballots no longer have a post-Election Day grace period — they must be received by the close of polls — and the board’s secure drop box in its parking lot at 1803 Superior Ave. is available around the clock, according to the board and the Ohio Secretary of State. UOCAVA military and overseas ballots must be received by Nov. 7, the board said.
The board is urging Cleveland-area voters to check their polling place before Tuesday, because 66 precinct voting locations changed in nine cities for this election, affecting nearly 60,000 voters, according to the board’s Oct. 28 announcement. The changes cover Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, East Cleveland, Highland Heights, Maple Heights, Parma Heights, Solon and South Euclid, among the cities the board listed, and the board said the Cleveland changes were prompted by the Cleveland Metropolitan School District closing 10 buildings that had been used as polling locations. Location-change letters were sent to all affected voters, the board said.
On Election Day, voters must bring an accepted photo ID — an Ohio driver license or state ID card, an interim identification form from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, a U.S. passport or passport card, or a U.S. military, Ohio National Guard or Department of Veterans Affairs ID card that includes the voter’s name and photograph — according to the board. A voter without an accepted ID may still vote a provisional ballot and can bring valid ID to the board during the four days after Election Day for that ballot to be counted, the board said.
Every Cuyahoga County ballot carries the statewide races — governor, attorney general, auditor, secretary of state, treasurer, the two Supreme Court seats and U.S. senator — along with State Issue 3, the proposed constitutional amendment that would require voters to present photo identification in order to vote, congressional and state legislative races, judgeships, and municipal and school issues that vary by community, according to the board. Sample ballots are available on the board’s website.
What happens next is Election Day itself. Voters in line by 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday will be able to vote, provisional voting will be available at the Board of Elections from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and the board will report unofficial results through the evening. NewsForce247 will follow Cuyahoga County’s returns as part of its Election Night coverage.
Photo: Erik Drost, CC BY