LOUISVILLE (WHAS11) – With just hours to go until the polls open for the 2018 midterm election, there is already a lot of interest in races across the country. A new ABC News-Washington Post poll finds 80-percent of registered voters say they will vote this year or already have. That's compared to 65-percent in the last midterm in 2014.
The numbers in Kentuckiana are also impressive. In Clark County, almost 400 people stopped by the polls Monday, and more than 8,000 have participated since early voting started. In Jefferson County, it's a similar story when it comes to absentee ballots. The Board of Elections has seen more than 8,000 in-house voters and more than 4,000 mail-ins.
WHAS11 saw long lines full of eager and early voters at the Clark County Courthouse Monday. For some tied up on Tuesday, this option is the only one that works. That includes James Stark who has to travel out of town for a funeral tomorrow.
"It worked out pretty well. I'm glad we did it,” Stark said. "I've never missed voting, so I wanted to keep my streak going."
Ross Gibbs voted Monday because he will be busy working on Election Day.
"I decided to come up here on my day off to do early voting,” Gibbs said. "If you have an opportunity to vote, use your voice to vote. Whether you win or lose or whatever, you still put your voice out there. Who knows, whoever you vote for might get into office just because of you."
For others, it's the novelty of a new opportunity. That includes Terri and Frank Houston.
"We don't have that in Mississippi. I've never voted early ever,” the Houstons said.
After recently relocating, the couple wanted to take full advantage of the setup.
"I'm back home. After 39 years, I got to move back and get to vote again in Indiana,” Terri Houston said. "I'm hoping there's a huge crowd tomorrow. I have a problem standing for a long time, so that's why we're here today and just because we can do early voting."
There are plenty of reasons to vote early, but the best one may be that you don't have to have one at all. Early voting lets you do so simply because you can, which is a welcomed choice for Hoosier voters.
"This is our right to vote. It is a privilege in America, and we need to do it no matter which way you vote,” the Houstons said.
Across the river, Kentucky is one of 13 states that doesn't do early voting. Absentee ballots are allowed, though, and proving to be a popular option in Louisville.
"We're expecting a turnout of about 44 percent, and we have about 600,000 people registered here in Jefferson County,” Jefferson County Board of Elections Spokesperson Nore Ghibaudy said.
The Jefferson County Board of Elections added it gives voters 50 days before the election to do an absentee ballot. Leaders there said they also saw considerably less voters four years ago for the last Midterm Election.
See election results on WHAS11 by clicking here. For more general information on voting in Kentucky and Indiana click here. See more Kentucky ballot information here.
►Contact reporter Sara Wagner at swagner@WHAS11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@WHAS11Sara) and Facebook.
