Advance voting numbers remain low

Advance voting numbers for Tuesday’s general election have picked up some this week, but they’re still slow, leaving Douglas County election officials pessimistic about voter turnout.

At the end of Wednesday, 257 people had cast advance ballots in person at the courthouse, and 290 voters had returned advance ballots by mail, according to the Douglas County Clerk’s Office.

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday for the city and school board elections in Lawrence and other Douglas County communities.

Douglas County Clerk Jamie Shew said the advance voting numbers are still behind the comparable 2007 in-person advance votes, when the clerk’s office had collected 420 votes the same number of days before the election.

Advance voting is still available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Friday at the courthouse, 1100 Mass. The courthouse in Lawrence, city halls in Lecompton and Eudora, and the Baldwin City library will also be advance-voting sites from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday.

Advance voting at the courthouse will also be open from 8 a.m. to noon Monday at the courthouse.