Election boards & voters react to HD 125 early voting turnout, special election preps
COLUMBIA AND MCDUFFIE COUNTIES, Ga. (WJBF) – The Columbia and McDuffie County Boards of Elections are working hard to prepare for an upcoming special election on short notice – and might have to do something they’ve never done before.
If the February 13th special election for House District 125 Representative ends up in a runoff, it’ll land on the same day as the Presidential Preference Primary election in March, which is new for the election workers.
There are five candidates in the running, so the possibility of a runoff election is high.
Election leaders said the upside will be that more people may vote in the runoff since they’ll already be at the polls, but they will need separate staff and separate sets of equipment for it.
“It will be interesting, we’ve never done anything like that here in Columbia County, but we’ll handle it,” said Nancy Gay, the Columbia County Board of Elections Director.
The special election only covers part of Columbia and McDuffie Counties, and voters must be registered in House District 125 to vote in it.
Advance voting precincts are at the former Euchee Creek Library in Grovetown, the Dearing Community Center, and the old Thomson High School gym on Main Street.
“The turnout is rather low,” Gay said. “I mean as of right now just over six-hundred people have voted and we’re two and a half weeks into early voting.”
“This district, House District 125, is mainly in Columbia County. My turnout has been very, very low. As of today we’ve only had one-hundred and thirty-six people to come vote,” said Phyllis Brooks, the McDuffie County Board of Elections Director.
Election leaders said special elections like this can be overlooked for multiple reasons, and there’s a time crunch when organizing them.
But voters we spoke to said all of that aside, it’s important to make your voice heard.
“Everybody needs to get out and do their community and constitutional duty and vote,” said David Harriss. “We’ve got a lot at stake in our country right now, not just locally but nationally, and I think everybody feels that.”
Advance in-person voting ends on Friday, February 9th and the special election is on February 13th, and the PPP and possibly the special election runoff will be on March 12th.
The following Columbia County precincts will be open on election day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
010 – Kiokee Baptist Church
016 – Woodlawn Baptist Church
020 – Harlem Branch Library
022 – Harlem Senior Center
024 – Second Mt. Moriah Baptist Church
025 – the Former Euchee Creek Library
030 – Liberty Park
031 – Grovetown Methodist Church
032 – Greater Augusta Apostolic Church
033 – Grovetown DPS Station #2
034 – Grovetown Branch Library
040 – Eubank Blanchard Community Center
062 – Parkway Baptist Church
068 – Parkway Elementary School
075 – Belair Baptist Church
The McDuffie County Precincts are:
The Dearing Community Center
The old Thomson High School gym at 511 Main St.
For more information, click here.
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