Despite the November election being only for local officials, the number of registered voters in Athens County fell only slightly from the same point last year.
Athens County has 45,165 registered voters this year, down from 45,418 people registered to vote in the 2016 Presidential Election.
That number is up from 2015, when 38,319 people in Athens County were registered to vote. The 2017 ballot includes candidates for Athens City Council and other local offices as well as for state issues, making the election more similar to 2015 than 2016.
Of those 45,165 registered voters, there are 9,928 registered Democrats and 6,366 registered Republicans.
Debbie Quivey, director of the Board of Election, said as of Wednesday, 1,057 absentee ballots had been cast. That number included ballots mailed in, cast in the office or hand-carried.
She also noted that “around 11” provisional ballots had been cast. Provisional ballots are an option for those who did not update their voter registration in Athens County but who still wish to vote. Provisional ballots are not counted until the voter’s eligibility has been confirmed.
