Early voting ends with 4,709 voters

What started sluggish ended with a flourish last night with election officials saying it was an early voting record for a primary election.

?It finished strong,? said election administrator Donna Yates. ?The Easter holiday may have contributed to the slower start but things got back to normal levels the last couple of weeks.?

Early voting in the local Democratic and Republican primaries concluded Thursday with 4,709 taking advantage of the early voting at the county government building on Locust Street. The option has been available since 1994. Those not casting early ballots will have one last chance to vote when the polls open around the county for election day May 2.

?We usually expect to see about half, or possibly even more than that, vote early nowadays given the convenience,? Yates said, noting the early voting number puts the county on pace for around 10,000 voters. ?But then some still enjoy getting out on election day and going to their precincts.?

This year?s early voting featured five contested races on the Democratic side including those of sheriff, county court clerk, trustee, district attorney general and county executive. County executive will be settled by the primary since there are no candidates waiting in the wings for the August general election.