Gage County Voter Turnout Already Exceeding Past Elections, Even With Coronavirus

BEATRICE - Gage County has just over 14,100 people registered to vote in the May 12th Primary, and if all voters who requested an early ballot cast their votes, turnout would come to nearly 44 percent. With ballots already returned, the percentage has already hit 30 percent.

"We have 6,186 ballots requested for this primary election, and of those requested, we have ballots returned of 4,218. That's a lot. I don't think in any General we've hit that number. We've hit maybe over 4,000 for early requests".

Gage County Clerk and Election Commissioner Dawn Hill says the big change this pandemic year, is not seeing voters come into the courthouse to vote early.
The last time a presidential primary was held, less than 4,000 Gage County residents voted. That’s already been surpassed in this primary.
Hill said Friday is the deadline for completing and putting a voter registration in the county’s drop box outside of the courthouse, by six p.m. It’s also the last day for the clerk’s office to receive a request for an early ballot.

"We have a list we call our indefinite voter list. We start sending those out in February, to all of those voters. And, then due to this pandemic, we ended up doing over 9,000....tried to send information to every eligible voter in our system, so everyone could have a chance to get a ballot if they wanted to, and avoid the polls if they were concerned about exposure".

For those who still choose to vote the traditional way, Hill says the county will use the same poll locations, with one exception. Because of closure to the public of the Villa at Flowing Springs…Ward One in Beatrice… that polling place has been switched to the YMCA.

Hill says counties are getting a lot of help from the Nebraska Secretary of State’s Office in making sure voting day volunteers and voters are safe, during the pandemic. That includes providing masks, gloves, protective equipment for poll workers and masks for voters, if they don't have one.
Poll workers will also have cleaning agents and face shields.

Hill says it’s possible there will be some adjustments as to the number of volunteers at each polling place, and how many people can be at the polling place at one time, keeping the six-feet social distancing guideline in mind.