Voter Registration Ends Oct. 5
General Election on Nov. 3
University of Texas students voting in 1972. Image: University of Texas at Arlington News Service Photograph Collection via Wikimedia Commons.
Robert Moore
Herald Staff
rmoore@harrodsburgherald.com
The deadline to register to vote for this year’s general election is Monday, Oct. 5, at 4 p.m.
This year’s election promises to be unlike any other in American history, due to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the intense interest in the presidential campaign between the Republican incumbent, Pres. Donald Trump, and his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden.
The other big race in Kentucky is between Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Republican incumbent who is running for his seventh term, and Democratic challenger Amy McGrath. Rep. Brett Guthrie, a Republican who has represented the 2nd congressional district—which includes Mercer County—since 2008, is being challenged by Democrat Hank Linderman.
Locally, the only contested election is for the Harrodsburg City Commission. Five candidates—incumbents Marvin “Bubby” Isham, Scott Moseley and Jack Coleman and challengers Billy Whitenack and Ruth Ann Bryant—are running for four positions. All five candidates are expected to participate in the general election forum at Lions Park Community Center on Monday, Oct. 5, starting at 7 p.m. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, there will not be an audience, but the public can listen on WHBN 1420 AM and 99.5 FM. In addition, the event will be livestreamed on Facebook.
In Burgin, where 13 people filed to run in the last election, there are only six candidates for the six seats: incumbents Joseph Monroe, Frances Hayslett Cord, Sindicat “Sid” Dunn, David Caldwell and William J. Keeboort, and newcomer John “Skippy” Stamp.
Across Kentucky, there has been an uptick in voter registratio, with the number of registered voters increasing to 3,517,567 as of Aug. 31, according to a press release from Secretary of State Michael Adams. In the past month, there has been a rise of 19,626 registered voters, or 0.56 percent.
While there have been nationwide calls for volunteers at polling stations, Mercer County Clerk Chris Horn said there are enough pollworkers to operate all five local voting centers. The number of voting locations is down significantly from 2018, when there were 16 sites, but Horn said all precinct ballots will be available at each location on election day, so voters are free to vote at the location closest to them. The polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If there are long lines, he said anyone who is in line but has not been able to cast their ballot by 6 p.m. will still be allowed to vote.
How to Vote
By Mail
Ballot requests can be made online at govote.ky.com or by calling 859-734-6310.
The last day to make your request is Friday, Oct. 9.
Horn said voters who have requested a ballot will be locked in. If they haven’t received their ballots through the mail, they will be able to vote in-person, he said. Voters can either return the ballot by mail or drop it off at the Mercer County Fiscal Courthouse (207 West Lexington Street).
Early In Person
Early in-person voting will be available at the Mercer County Fiscal Courthouse (207 West Lexington Street).
You can cast your ballot starting Oct. 13 until Nov. 2 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on three Saturdays—Oct. 17, Oct. 24 and Oct. 31—from 8 a.m. until noon.
Election Day (Tuesday, Nov. 3)
Mercer County will have five countywide voting centers. All precinct ballots will be available at each location on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Polling Locations:
Lions Park Community Center (450 East Factory Street, Harrodsburg)
National Guard Armory (500 Tapp Road, Harrodsburg)
Burgin Baptist Church (433 East Main Street, Burgin)
McAfee Fire Station (2805 Louisville Road, Harrodsburg)
Cornishville Fire Department (4534 Cornishville Road, Harrodsburg)
Election Deadlines
The deadline to register online to vote in the 2020 General Election is Monday, Oct. 5, at 4 p.m. Kentucky residents can register by visiting the state’s Online Voter Registration webpage.
The deadline to request an absentee ballot is Oct. 9. Absentee ballots are available online at GoVoteKy.com.
For more information, call the Mercer County Clerk’s Office at 734-6310 or visit online at mercer.countyclerk.us.
