Ware County voters embraced the lone Saturday voting chance before next week’s Election Runoff between U.S. Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker.
A total of 530 ballots were cast during the eight-hour period voting was accepted November 26 at the Ware County Board of Elections and Registration, 408 Tebeau Street. Another 41 absentee ballots were returned Saturday from the 699 the office sent out for the runoff, according to the office’s daily voting report.
“It was steady all day,” said Supervisor of Elections Carlos Nelson. “We had about a 10- to 15-minute wait most of the day.
“I’m grateful the Elections Board allowed Saturday voting for the runoff. The voters were appreciative for the opportunity.”
Ware was the lone area county to offer the chance along with weekday voting this week. Brantley, Pierce and Bacon counties said they weren’t going to have Saturday voting opportunity following a check last week.
The Saturday voting came as the result of a ruling by Judge Thomas A. Cox of Fulton County on a lawsuit filed by Warnock’s campaign seeking reversal of the decision of Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office that declared that holding early voting that day would violate a state law that prohibits runoffs on any day immediately following a state holiday. Besides Thanksgiving Day on Thursday, November 24, the following day also is a state holiday.
Raffensperger’s office has appealed the judge’s decision to the state’s appellate court, but it was rejected. Cox’s ruling left voting on November 26 up to the county election boards.
“We were one of the few in South Georgia,” Nelson said Monday. “I think Savannah (Chatham County) was the closest to us.”
Nelson said Monday’s turnout likely would pass Saturday’s. He said about 1 p.m. Monday that “about 350” votes already had been cast.
If so that would exceed the in-person total for any of the 17 days for the November 8 General Election. The highest one-day total was 532 on Friday, November 4, but that came from two locations — the board office as well as the at the Ware County Administration Building.
The highest one-day total at the board office came Tuesday, October 18 when 393 ballots were cast.
“I think we’ll probably have around 600 today,” Nelson said.
Weekday voting is from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. through Friday, December 2 at the board office. Election Day voting Tuesday, December 6 is 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at a registrant’s precinct of record.
The runoff is the result of neither Warnock, the Democrat incumbent, nor Walker, his Republican challenger, receiving more than 50 percent of the vote earlier this month.
Warnock collected 49.4 percent of the vote to Walker’s 48.5 percent. Their runoff is the lone item on the ballot.
