VA Voters Form Long Lines On 1st Day Of In-Person Absentee Voting

NORTHERN VIRGINIA — Long lines of voters were waiting outside election offices across Northern Virginia when general registrars opened their doors at 8:30 a.m. Friday on the first day of in-person absentee voting. In one of the most anticipated elections in memory, Virginia voters wanted to make sure their votes are counted and did not want to wait before it was too late.

Registered voters have until Oct. 31 to participate in Virginia's in-person absentee voting. The 45-day period to vote did not deter hundreds of voters from waiting outside the Fairfax County Government Center Friday to cast their ballots on the first day of in-person absentee voting.

As of 4 p.m. Friday, about 800 voters had participated in the in-person absentee voting at the Fairfax County Government Center, a county spokesman said.

For the next month, Fairfax County voters will need to do their in-person absentee voting at the government center. In anticipation of the high voter turnout, Fairfax County will offer 14 satellite locations for in-person absentee voting starting Oct. 14.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam joined the thousands of other Virginians participating in the first day of in-person absentee voting. The governor voted at the Richmond general registrar’s office.

“While the pandemic has made this an unprecedented election year, Virginia voters have several safe and easy ways to exercise their constitutional right to vote," Northam said Friday in a statement.

Due to the coronavirus crisis, a higher number of Virginians also are expected to vote by mail in the 2020 general election. As of Thursday, the Department of Elections had received 824,000 requests for absentee ballots by mail. For comparison, 566,000 votes were cast absentee in the 2016 general election and only half that total by mail.

New laws allow all Virginians to vote absentee by mail, or in person at their local registrar’s office or satellite locations. Legislation passed this year removed a previous provision that required absentee voters to provide a reason for voting early. In 2020, any Virginia voter may vote early without providing a specific reason.

Along with in-person absentee voting, election offices began mailing ballots on Friday to the more than 800,000 voters who applied for them. Voters can submit an application online through the Virginia Department of Elections.

Fairfax County election officials recommend applying well before the Oct. 23 deadline. A Virginia driver's license number and the last four digits of your Social Security number are needed to apply online.

The Virginia General Assembly also approved use of secure drop boxes for returning absentee ballots. Drop boxes will be available during hours when the Fairfax County Office of Elections is open and when other in-person early voting locations are open. Voters may also return a ballot to any precinct on Nov. 3 from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Other Northern Virginia jurisdictions also were seeing large voter turnouts on the first day of in-person absentee voting. In the City of Manassas, long lines of voters were waiting outside the general registrar's office to vote on Friday. For the safety of voters and election staff due to the coronavirus, only six voters were permitted into the registrar's office at a time to vote absentee, Manassas General Registrar Susan Reed told Patch.

In the City of Fairfax, election officials saw more people vote in the first 90 minutes of the day than they had seen during entire days of in-person absentee voting in previous elections, said Brenda Cabrera, director of elections and General Registrar for the City of Fairfax.

Here are important dates for Virginia voters to remember for the Nov. 3 general election:

• Friday, Sept. 18 — Early voting begins.

• Tuesday, Oct. 13 — Last day to register to vote or update registration for the Nov. 3 election. The deadline is 5 p.m. in person and 11:59 p.m. online.

• Wednesday, Oct. 14 — Satellite early voting locations open across Fairfax County.

• Friday, Oct. 23 at 5 p.m. — Application deadline to request an absentee ballot be mailed.

• Saturday, Oct. 31 at 5 p.m. — Deadline to vote early in person.

• Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. — Deadline to return completed ballot to registrar. If returning your ballot by-mail, it must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by the registrar by noon on the third day after the election (Nov. 6).

• Tuesday, Nov. 3 — Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day.

Patch conducted a survey of voter habits in August as the November election grew closer. According to the Virginia Patch survey, voting by mail was not the overwhelming choice for readers. Over 2,500 responses came in, and nearly 900 shared additional thoughts on voting by mail or in person in the election.

Among the 2,516 responses, 44.6 percent said they plan to vote in person on Election Day (Nov. 3). There were 35.9 percent who plan to vote absentee by mail, and 16.3 percent plan to vote absentee at an in-person location.

The smaller percentage of people who plan to vote absentee at an in-person location were out in force across Northern Virginia Friday morning.

Election officials across Northern Virginia seemed impressed by the voter enthusiasm on the first day of in-person absentee voting. After witnessing the long lines outside the county government's headquarters building, Fairfax County officials alerted residents not to worry. "There are many more days left to vote early and more locations will open in October," the county said.

The 14 satellite locations that will allow for in-person absentee voting on Oct. 14 are:

• Centreville Regional Library, 14200 Saint Germain Drive, Centreville

• Franconia Governmental Center 6121 Franconia Road, Alexandria

• Great Falls Library 9830 Georgetown Pike, Great Falls

• Herndon Fortnightly Library 768 Center Street, Herndon

• Laurel Hill Golf Club 8701 Laurel Crest Drive, Lorton

• Mason Governmental Center 6507 Columbia Pike, Annandale

• McLean Governmental Center 1437 Balls Hill Road, McLean

• Mount Vernon Governmental Center 2511 Parkers Lane, Alexandria

• North County Governmental Center 1801 Cameron Glen Drive, Reston

• Providence Community Center 3001 Vaden Drive, Fairfax

• Sully Governmental Center 4900 Stonecroft Boulevard, Chantilly

• Thomas Jefferson Library 7415 Arlington Boulevard, Falls Church

• Tysons-Pimmit Regional Library 7584 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church

• West Springfield Governmental Center 6140 Rolling Road, Springfield

RELATED:

• Fairfax County November 2020 Election: Deadlines, Candidates

• How Virginia Residents Plan To Vote: Patch Survey Results

• Drop Box Available For Absentee Ballots In Fairfax City

This article originally appeared on the Fairfax City Patch