Election Day is Tuesday. Here’s what voters in Tennessee and Georgia need to know.
Voters across the country will be weighing in on the next president of the United States, but there are also many local and state-level positions on the ballot.
Early voting ended Thursday in Tennessee and Friday in Georgia.
More than half of eligible voters in Georgia had cast ballots by Thursday afternoon, according to the Georgia secretary of state’s office.
About 46% of registered voters voted early in Tennessee, data from the Tennessee secretary of state shows.
Results for local races will likely be in earlier than results for the presidential race following the election.
(LEARN MORE: Times Free Press Voter Guide 2024)
TENNESSEE
In Tennessee, you can find your polling place online at web.go-vote-tn.elections.tn.gov or check your voter registration card for the location.
In Hamilton County, voters can also go online on the county election commission’s website to find their polling place.
Unlike in early voting, when you can vote at any site, voters on Election Day must vote at their own precinct.
Polls in Hamilton County will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Tennessee requires polls across the state to close at 8 p.m. Eastern or 7 p.m. Central time, and opening times are set by the county.
To vote in person, voters must bring a photo ID. Valid forms include a driver’s license, state ID card, gun permit or federal identification, like a passport or military ID, that include a photo. Student ID cards are not accepted.
If you received a ballot by mail, you must return it by mail — they won’t be accepted in person on Election Day. The ballot must be received by your county election commission by the end of the day on Tuesday to be counted.
In Tennessee, Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn is facing a challenge from state Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville.
In the southeastern part of the state, including Chattanooga, Republican Rep. Chuck Fleischmann faces Dem0cratic challenger Jack Allen.
Several state lawmaker positions are also on the ballot, as well as a referendum about liquor sales in unincorporated Hamilton County and municipal elections in East Ridge, Collegedale, Red Bank, Signal Mountain, Soddy-Daisy, Lakesite and Walden.
You can find coverage of the election and local races on the Times Free Press voter guide.
GEORGIA
Georgia voters can look up their polling place online at mvp.sos.ga.gov or by calling their local election commission.
Polls in Georgia will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. If you are in line by 7 p.m., you will be allowed to vote.
Georgia voters have to bring a photo ID to the polls. Valid identification in Georgia includes student IDs from public colleges or universities in the state, as well as other government-issued IDs with photos.
(READ MORE: Whitfield County ballot problem addressed by elections officials)
As in Tennessee, Georgia requires absentee ballots to be returned by mail by the time polls close Tuesday.
The state is expected to play a key role in the outcome of the presidential race.
In Northwest Georgia, voters will also be weighing in on Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who faces Democrat Shawn Harris in her bid for a third term.
The state’s ballot also asks voters about a proposed amendment to cap increases in annual property tax assessments in relation to inflation.
Voters in Whitfield County will vote for the county’s sheriff, between incumbent Democratic Sheriff Scott Chitwood and Republican challenger Darren Pierce, a former sheriff’s deputy.
Positions on the Catoosa County Commission are also on the ballot there.
Contact Ellen Gerst at egerst@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6319.