Athens County experienced a 1 percent increase between 2006 and 2010 in absentee voters following a 2006 change in Ohio absentee voting regulations.
More than 3,000 people in Athens County have requested an absentee ballot this year and more than 2,000 were submitted for the midterm elections next week, said Debbie Quivey, director of the Athens County Board of Elections.
It is a 1 percent increase in absentee voting from the last midterm elections in 2006, when more than 2,700 ballots were requested in Athens County and more than 2,600 were submitted, according to the Ohio Secretary of State's website.
For the election Nov. 2, Ohio had more than 600,000 people request an absentee ballot as of Oct. 4, said Louisa Barone, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Secretary of State. In 2006, more than 700,000 people requested ballots.
Although the numbers show that more people requested ballots in 2006, the final tally of requested absentee ballots in 2010 will not be available until after the election.
In 2006, a law was passed that allowed no-fault absentee voting, which means a person no longer has to provide a reason in order to cast an absentee ballot, Barone said.
Absentee voting was originally available to those who were unable to vote at their regular polling location, such as if a person were out of town at the time of the election, Quivey said.
(Board of Elections) encourages people to vote who otherwise might not
Quivey said.
Barone and Quivey both said the new regulation might have increased voter participation by offering methods different from traditional voting.
(Absentee voting) has increased since 2006 and we think it will continue to increase because it offers voters alternative options Barone said. They seem to like the no-fault absentee option.
The Athens County Board of Elections expects the majority of the requested ballots still out to be submitted by Tuesday, Quivey said.
Voting is available in person at the Athens County Board of Elections building Tuesday, Nov. 1 until 4 p.m. To vote by mail, the application needs to be sent by 12 p.m. Oct. 30, Quivey said.
Ohio University senior Jaclyn Schnelle said she voted absentee in the 2008 presidential election but she did not know enough about the candidates to vote in this election.
Absentee voting makes it so that people don't have an excuse not to vote
she said. If you're interested in voting
there is no reason for you not to vote.
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Christopher Brown
