Early voting in Licking County entered its final week Monday, with the county board of elections in Newark reporting turnout already well ahead of the last two midterm cycles ahead of the November 3 general election. The board office at 20 South Second Street in Newark, inside the Don Hill County Administration Building, is the county’s only early in-person voting location.
As of October 23, the board had issued 12,425 absentee ballots and nearly 9,100 residents had voted early in person, according to Ohio Secretary of State data reported by the Newark Advocate. Nearly 22,000 ballots in total had been requested, a pace Deputy Director Brian Mead said has been steady at a little over 700 voters a day — compared with about 5,000 in-person voters through the first three weeks in 2022.
Hours expand in the final week. The board is open Tuesday, October 27 from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. — Tuesday is also the deadline for absentee ballot applications to be received, by 8:30 p.m. Early voting then runs Wednesday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., 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 in-person voting ends.
On the ballot, Licking County voters are choosing a successor to Commissioner Rick Black, deciding a renewal of the Licking Park District’s 0.375-mill, five-year levy for parks, trails and recreation, and weighing statewide races including governor and U.S. Senate and State Issue 3, the proposed constitutional amendment on photo ID. Voters in Pataskala and Granville are also deciding charter amendments aimed at large data centers, and Heath voters face charter questions of their own.
Ballots returned by mail must be received by the board by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, November 3 — a postmark alone is not enough under Ohio’s current rules. Voters who requested a mail ballot are asked not to vote at the polls; they should return that ballot by mail, in person, or through a near relative by the deadline.
Mead told the Advocate he expects another 5,000 to 8,000 voters over the remaining early days, which would push the county past its 2018 and 2022 early totals of roughly 24,100 and 25,000. Polls on Election Day are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at assigned precinct locations, and anyone in line at 7:30 p.m. may vote.