View our 2018 Voter Guide
Polls across Hamilton County close in less than two hours, and despite the rainy weather, some precincts are seeing much higher voter turnout than in previous primary elections already.
Melody Wingfield, the officer of elections at the St. Elmo precinct, and Carolyn Tatum, the officer of elections at the East Lake precinct, both said they were seeing a higher voter turnout Thursday than in the May primaries. By 4:35 p.m. Thursday, the St. Elmo precinct had tallied 281 votes – four times as many ballots cast in the May 1st primary.
Election Official Don Shoemaker peels off “I Voted” stickers from a roll on election day at Concord Baptist Church on Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018, in Chattanooga, Tenn.“It’s a lot heavier than it normally is for primaries,” she said. “We had as many people in the first three hours as we had the entire day for the May primary.”
East Lake had 122 ballots cast by 4 p.m., which is also more than the precinct saw the entire day during the May primary. Tatum said they never reached 100 votes in May.
John Altick fills out his ballot on election day at Concord Baptist Church on Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018, in Chattanooga, Tenn.“I’m hoping we can get to 200 today,” Tatum said. “Quite a few people are asking about the school board race.”