Many Watertown voters have already cast their ballot in the 2020 Presidential Election, with the number of votes already received by the Town Clerk’s office nearly as high as the total cast in the September Preliminary Election.
As of Tuesday afternoon, more than 40 percent of Watertown’s registered voters had turned in their ballots, according to Town Manager Michael Driscoll, who got the latest numbers from Town Clerk John Flynn.
The Town sent out 13,255 vote-by-mail and absentee ballots, many of which have already been returned, Driscoll said, plus early voting started on Oct. 17 and continues through Oct. 30.
“What’s been returned by mail is 7,474, The number of in-person ballots cast (during early voting) is 3,203,” Driscoll said. “That represents 10,677 ballots total, which represents 42 percent of the total number of registered voters eligible to vote in the election next Tuesday.”
In the 2016 Presidential Election, 18,402 votes were cast in Watertown, which was 75.89 percent of the Town’s registered voters. The Sept. 1 Preliminary Election drew 44.8 percent of voters, with 11,014 ballots cast.
Mail in ballots can be dropped off in the box outside Town Hall, 149 Main St., on the Saltonstall Park side of the building.
Town Council President Mark Sideris thanked Flynn and his staff in the Clerk’s office for overseeing the election.
“We have had very successful early voting period. We have had no issues, no ballot boxes have caught on fire,” Sideris said, referring to the ballot box set ablaze in Boston over the weekend. “The ballot box holds about 700 ballots, and it has to be emptied a couple times a day.”
Along with the race for President, Watertown voters can also vote in the races for U.S. Senator, Congress and on two statewide ballot questions. Voters in Precincts 1 through 9 also have two ballot questions for the 29th Middlesex State Representative District.
People voting on Election Day can do so from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at their precincts. Some polling locations have changed for the 2020 Presidential Election due to construction at two of the town’s schools. Precinct 2 moved from Hosmer School to the Hellenic Cultural Center and Precincts 11 and 12 moved from Cunniff School to Watertown Middle School cafeteria.
To check what precinct you are in and who is on your ballot, enter your address on the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s website (click here).
Voting before even the last presidential debate took place makes no sense.
In what other type of vote do people vote early?
None that I know of.
Karen
…when you already know the incumbent, and are not having any more of it.
Or you are someone who will not vote for the challenger who is willing to turn the USA into a Socialist hellhole for his own personal power gains. He has never held a real job in his entire life. He can’t remember where he is, who he is, what he says, and still truly believes he is 60 years old.
There are places folks can go to to get much much more information on a candidate policies than a TV “debate” , for starters their website normally will have a bunch of questions and answers. Next is reading a lot of articles from news sources( all sides.com is a great source as it will give you left, right leaning and middle of the road reporting), the Sunday Am shows are good to also get more information. This gives any voter more than enough information to be an educated voter and vote early. Please read the policies of the candidates online as this is where you will get much better info and go to fact-check sites to validate news sources.