MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Monongalia County Clerk Carye Blaney and staff are preparing for election day with a recording breaking early voting period in the books. Final early voting turnout reached a new record with 24,227 voters casting ballots. That represents 37 percent total voter turnout prior to election day.
On WAJR’s “Talk of the Town,” she turned her attention to preparations for election day on Tuesday.
“We had about 15,000 people vote on actual election day in 2016 and about 11,000 in 2020, but 2020 was the COVID year, and I expected those numbers to be a little lower,” Blaney said.
During the early voting period, the recurring problem at polling locations was people wearing candidate-related campaign items. She said buttons, hats, shirts, pants, or anything displaying any candidate on the ballot cannot be worn within 100 feet of a polling location.
“You are not permitted to wear those in the polling location or within 100 feet of a polling location when you appear to vote,” Blaney said. “That is the most consistent problem we’ve had.”
High voting numbers have brought many new voters that had questions about voting machines, how they work, and the process. Her staff and volunteers at polling locations can answer any question as long as it is not related to a candidate or politics.
“We get a lot of questions when people come in to vote about our voting system and how to layout the process,” Blaney said. “And we’re happy to answer any question a voter has at any time.”
Many questions are generated from national media coverage that likely doesn’t apply to Monongalia County or West Virginia, but Blaney encouraged people to pick up the phone or come to the office with any questions.
“I would much rather them to call and ask the question to come see for themselves to avail themselves to the correct information for Monongalia County.”
On Tuesday, more than 200 volunteer poll workers will keep more than 40 voting locations operating from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Blaney said these poll workers will be on the job well before the polls open and well after they close.
“These poll workers are doing a wonderful job of voting as many people as we’ve voted during this time period and on election day, and I want to make sure everyone has the best experience possible.”
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