Turn-Out Light for E-SPLOST Early Voting

Halfway through early voting for the E-SPLOST special election in Stephens County, turnout has been slow.

That’s according to Stephens County Registrar Bill Cochran.

“We have had a total of 231 advance, in-person voters,” said Cochran on Tuesday afternoon. “It is extremely light. This is an extremely important issue we are voting on and I would like to see more people turnout.”

He said voting will not take more than a few minutes.

Stephens County voters are casting ballots on whether or not to continue the one-cent Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for Education for another five years.

Early voting hours are on Monday through Friday from today through March 17 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Stephens County Registrar’s Office, which is located in the Stephens County Courthouse Annex in downtown Toccoa on Tugalo Street.

Voters will need a picture ID and Cochran reminds voters that there is no Saturday voting.

The actual Election Day itself is Tuesday, March 21, when polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Stephens County Senior Center on Rose Lane in Toccoa.

Cochran said people can still also request paper, mail-in absentee ballots.

“Any voter can request a mail-in absentee ballot,” said Cochran, who explained that can be done by contacting the Registrar’s Office and getting an application.

March 17 is the last day to request an absentee paper, mail-in ballot and those must be returned by 7 p.m. on March 21 to the Registrar’s Office.

Also, it should be noted that those who filled out an application last year for a paper, mail-in absentee ballot must fill out a new application for this election as those applications do not roll over from one calendar year to the next.

Stephens County School Superintendent Bryan Dorsey said the revenues generated from the renewal of the E-SPLOST would go towards maintenance and technology needs throughout the system, as well as CTAE renovations at the high school.

Dorsey went on to say that this would not be a new tax, but a continuation of the one penny that is already being collected.

Anyone with questions about early voting can contact the Stephens County Registrar’s Office at 706-886-8954.