Boonsboro early voting site for 2024 gets county's blessing, awaits state approval

A third Washington County early voting site for next year's elections awaits approval by the State Board of Elections, but was given a green light Tuesday by the Board of County Commissioners.

The commissioners voted unanimously to approve the American Legion, Clopper-Michael Post 10 at 710 N. Main St., Boonsboro, for a third early voting site for the 2024 elections.

Election Director Barry Jackson told the commissioners that state election laws require counties with 50,000 registered voters but fewer than 100,000 voters must provide two early voting sites, and can add a third with the approval of the local governing body and the State Board of Elections.

At 100,000 registered voters, the county must provide three early voting sites — and Washington County is flirting with that benchmark with active voter registration of 99,396 as of Sept. 18, according to numbers from the state board.

The commissioners had previously approved early voting sites at the county Election Center at 17718 Virginia Ave., Hagerstown; and the Hancock Town Hall at 126 W. High St.

Hagerstown councilman critical of not having a downtown early voting site

The Washington County Board of Elections had also considered using the Community Volunteer Fire Co. of District 12 facility in Fairplay and the Fletcher Branch of the Washington County Free Library in downtown Hagerstown — which had served as an early voting site in the last election.

But some county officials complained that the library and the Election Center were too close together for what were the county's only two early voting sites, and didn't adequately serve the county's voters.

Excluding the library for next year's election drew criticism last week from Hagerstown Councilman Kristin Aleshire, however.

Aleshire said he understood why county elections officials had kept the Virginia Avenue site, but told fellow council members at last week's council work session that "we have to recognize the fact that that location is not in downtown in the way that it used to be. And there are a ton of folks that want to and need to and like to get there for that purpose that just aren't gonna be able to."

The county elections office was on West Washington Street downtown before moving to the Virginia Avenue site.

Aleshire said he didn't know who was responsible for those decisions or why they were made, but "it was odd to me that we didn't have an early voting location downtown, where everybody out there, for every other thing under the sun, seems to believe that that's where those types of services belong … all of them except for this one.

"It just doesn't make sense."

The State Board of Elections' next scheduled meeting is Oct. 26. Once the board approves the Boonsboro location, Jackson told The Herald-Mail, that site will be finalized.

The county government has allocated $50,000 in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget to operate the third site.

Background: Elections board drops library as an early election site in favor of Hancock Town Hall

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: County approves Boonsboro early voting site, state must concur