LORAIN, Ohio — Lorain County voters are in the final stretch of early voting for the Nov. 3 general election, with in-person early voting continuing through the weekend at the Lorain County Board of Elections, 1985 North Ridge Road East in Lorain, according to the board’s published 2026 general election schedule.
Early voting runs Saturday, Oct. 31, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 1, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and then ends — there is no early voting on Monday, Nov. 2, according to the Lorain County Board of Elections schedule, which follows Ohio Secretary of State Directive 2026-09. On Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, polls across Lorain County are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at each voter’s assigned precinct polling place.
Lorain County is one of four Ohio counties — along with Cuyahoga, Hamilton and Lucas — where every precinct has a multi-page ballot this year because of the number of races and local issues, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose noted in a statement ahead of the final early-voting weekend reported by The New Americans Magazine. Voters who take a few minutes to review a sample ballot before they go will move through those pages faster, and boards expect the final weekend to be the busiest of the early-voting period.
"Leading up to this weekend, Ohio has already offered more than 190 hours of in-person early voting, but it’s inevitable that some people will wait until the final weekend," LaRose said in the statement reported by The New Americans Magazine. He urged voters to be prepared and patient, and to report suspected improper campaign conduct to their board of elections or to his office’s Election Integrity Unit.
The deadline to request an absentee ballot by mail has passed — applications were due by 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 27 under the Ohio Secretary of State’s 2026 voting schedule. Voters who already hold an absentee ballot should not rely on the mail at this point: under the state law signed by Gov. Mike DeWine in December 2025, non-military absentee ballots must be received by the board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day to be counted, with no post-election grace period, according to reporting by The Columbus Dispatch. The board’s office in Lorain is the drop-off point for Lorain County ballots.
Lorain County voters decide countywide offices, city and village races, school board seats and local levies and issues on the Nov. 3 ballot, alongside Ohio’s statewide races. Voters can look up their registration, precinct and sample ballot through the Lorain County Board of Elections and at VoteOhio.gov before heading out.
What happens next: early voting closes at 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, the board prepares for Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and any voter still holding an absentee ballot should deliver it in person to 1985 North Ridge Road East by 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. The board’s office will also be open for ballot curing from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 4 through Nov. 7, as required by Ohio Secretary of State Directive 2026-10, according to the board.
Photo: AlexWooledge, CC BY-SA