Early voting turnout massive across counties

Convenience is the reason Kasey Ramirez chose to vote early Wednesday. Whatever the reason, Benton and Washington counties are seeing heavy early voter turnout.

"I work for the university teaching at the Art Department, and I teach on Election Day, so I'm just trying to ease up my schedule (by voting early)," Ramirez said.

Ramirez, who voted at the Washington County Courthouse at 280 N. College Ave., said voting early took no longer than two minutes.

"I didn't even have to wait in line," she said.

Ramirez said voting in this election was especially important to her.

"I like to feel like I'm contributing something," she said.

Early voting kicked off Monday, and the flow of voters has been constant, said Tena O'Brien, Benton County Clerk.

"We had a high number turnout, but everything has gone very smooth," O'Brien said. "We haven't had any problem, and I hope it continues. It's been great; it has tripled (early voting) in 2012."

On Monday, 5,539 people voted in Benton County. The turnout was larger on Tuesday with 5,727 voters, said Tiffany Underwood, office manager for the Benton County Clerk's Office.

Day one and day two early voting turnout in Benton County surpassed the turnout on the same days in 2014, which had 1,970 voters on day one and 2,206 voters on day two, and in 2012, which had 2,800 day-one voters and 3,064 day-two voters, according to data provided by Underwood.

"It is a presidential election, and I think this election cycle has sparked the interest of all the registered voters throughout the United States," O'Brien said. "I think the turnout for this election is probably going to be record breaking all around."

Early voting numbers also have been strong in Washington County, which had 4,137 voters on Monday, much higher than the 1,087 first-day voters in 2014, and 4,316 voters on Tuesday.

"Each day, we've done more than the previous day," said Jennifer Price, Washington County election coordinator.

Almost 9,500 votes had been cast across Washington as of 1 p.m. Wednesday, according to Price.

"These are record numbers for us," she said.

Both counties have provided voters with plenty of voting location options, with seven early voting centers in Washington County and 10 early voting centers in Benton County.

"It's to give convenience to the voters," O'Brien said. "Our county is so huge, I don't know if all of (the voters) could vote on election day."

Early voting is necessary to make sure as many people as possible can exercise their right to vote, Price said.

"We've been pushing the word on early voting to avoid the long lines on election day," Price said.

There haven't been any significant problems so far, Price said.

"Sometime a sensor needs to be cleaned or a ballot might get jammed, but those were things that happened with the old equipment, so those are not things that are new to us," Price said.

Price attributes the high turnout to two new candidates, Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, vying for the presidency.

"I think that anytime you don't have an incumbent running for president, it always drives interest," Price said.

Jess Perez, a University of Arkansas student who also voted Wednesday, said she voted early for the first time this year because who becomes president is important to her and the people she cares about.

"I'm Latina, and some of the things said by (Donald Trump) have not been very Latino-friendly, or what he has said about LGBT rights, and I have friends who are LGBT," Perez said. "The issues for Arkansas on the ballot are also important."

The state's future is the primary reason Fayetteville resident Angel Guidry voted Wednesday.

"They had some issues that I wanted to make sure I got in and voted on," Guidry said. "I needed my voice heard."

The issue Guidry is most concerned about is Issue 7, the act to legalize medical cannabis, which she supports.

Voting early was easy, Guidry said.

"It flowed a lot easier this year," she said. "It seems more organized."

Early voting continues today. Election Day is Nov. 8.

NW News on 10/27/2016