Will Jackson County voting lines be shorter on Election Day? What officials say
After two weeks of long lines at early voting locations, Jackson County election officials say voters won’t have to wait as long on Election Day.
Tammy Brown, director of the Jackson County Election Board, said on Friday that lines will be shorter Tuesday, Nov. 5, because of the larger number of polling places available. The organization serves Jackson County residents in Raytown, Independence, Blue Springs, Lee’s Summit and beyond.
Despite the long lines for no-excuse absentee voting, Brown reassured voters that they can cast their ballots on Election Day.
With polls in 103 buildings, Jackson County Election Board’s approximately 278,000 registered voters will be spread out. Some Election Day polls will be held at schools and churches, places that Brown said they avoided during early voting.
Similarly sized Kansas City Election Board will have 78 polling locations open Tuesday.
The Jackson County Election Board did not immediately respond to requests for the number of voting booths and registered voters designated to each polling place.
The number of voting machines at each polling place will correspond to the number of registered voters in each precinct, Brown said.
The Jackson County Election Board said it expects 80% voter turnout during the general election, compared to a total of 76% in 2016 and 26% in the 2024 primary in August. As of Monday, 14% of registered voters, or about 38,300, had already cast their ballot by mail or through early voting.
Voters in the parts of Jackson County outside of Kansas City encountered long lines for no-excuse absentee voting, stretching to 4 ½ hours over the weekend, according to one Reddit user.
While the Kansas City Election Board serves roughly the same number of voters, the organization had six early voting locations compared to Jackson County’s two polling places operating at the same time.
The Star’s Natalie Wallington contributed to this story.
Have more questions about elections in the Kansas City area? Ask the Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com.
