Pike County voters in Waverly are in the final days of early voting before the Nov. 3 general election, with in-person early voting running through Sunday, Nov. 1 at the Pike County Board of Elections, 230 Waverly Plaza, Suite 1100, in Waverly, according to the board’s posted election information.
Early in-person voting began Oct. 6 under the Ohio Secretary of State’s statewide schedule. The final weekend hours are Saturday, Oct. 31 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 1 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. There is no in-person early voting on Monday, Nov. 2, and voters still in line when a session ends are allowed to vote. On Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at voters’ assigned precinct polling places, according to the Ohio Secretary of State.
Every Pike County voter will decide State Issue 3, on whether a photo ID requirement should be made part of the Ohio Constitution, and a contested county commissioner race between Bob Thompson, a Democrat, and Neil Edward Leist, a Republican, according to the Chillicothe Gazette’s roundup of the county’s certified ballot. David K. Brown, a Republican, is listed for county auditor in the Gazette’s roundup.
The countywide levy on the ballot is an additional tax for Pike County developmental disabilities programs and services, which could include acquisition, construction, renovation, financing, maintenance and operation of facilities of the Pike County Board of Developmental Disabilities, according to the Chillicothe Gazette. The levy would amount to $1,327,292 annually at a rate not exceeding 2 mills for each $1 of taxable value — $70 for each $100,000 of the county auditor’s market value — for five years, commencing in 2026 and first due in calendar year 2027, the Gazette reported.
Waverly City School District voters face an added wrinkle. The Waverly City Schools Board of Education said in a statement reported by the Scioto Valley Guardian that the income tax levy on the Nov. 3 ballot does not match what the board proposed: the board said it submitted a five-year, 0.5% traditional income tax, while the ballot identifies it as an earned income tax, which applies to a narrower range of income and would generate less revenue. The district said it has cut more than $1.6 million from its budget over the past year, and that even as printed, the levy will help but will not fully cover its needs, according to the Scioto Valley Guardian’s report of the board’s statement. As listed by the Chillicothe Gazette, the question is a five-year income tax on the earned income of district residents for current expenses.
Township voters will also decide renewal levies compiled by the Chillicothe Gazette, including Benton and Pebble township cemetery renewals, a Mifflin Township fire protection renewal, a Perry Township fire protection renewal, a Seal Township and Piketon Village fire protection renewal, a Sunfish Township fire protection renewal, and a Union Township cemetery renewal.
Absentee voters face a hard deadline this year. Under Senate Bill 293, absentee ballots must be received by the board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 3 to be counted, with an exception for military and overseas voters, and there is no longer a post-Election Day grace period, according to The Columbus Dispatch. The Pike County Board of Elections can be reached at 740-947-4512, and sample ballots and precinct assignments are available through the Secretary of State’s voter lookup. What happens next is Election Day itself: polls open at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, and unofficial results will follow after polls close at 7:30 p.m.