VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - So far in the city, more than 100,000 people have voted by mail or in-person. Does that mean there won't be lines on Election Day?
Members of the Electoral Board said they don't want to speculate, but they are anticipating fewer people will vote in-person compared to other elections like in 2008. "The advice is to be prepared to wait in line and if you don't have to - that's great," said Jeffrey Marks, the Chairman of the Electoral Board.
Election officials met Thursday afternoon to review how early voting is going and to finalize their Election Day plan. Polls will be open as normal from 6 am to 7 pm in Virginia, but some precincts have had to change. They recommend anyone voting in person double check where they need to vote.
"We've had precincts that because of COVID regulations could not be precincts this year, so it's important the vote check that out," said Tim Barrow, a member of the Electoral Board.
As for Election Night results, election officials say the city should be in pretty good shape because more than 40,000 mail-in ballots have already been entered into voting machines. Currently, about 20,000 mail-in ballots are outstanding, but they will continue to be accepted through noon on November 6.
"On Election Night here in Virginia Beach, we'll have a good feel for where our candidates are," said Barrow.
Electoral Board members want voters to have confidence in the process. "We are very confident that we are accurately accommodating the voters in this process and that the votes will be recorded accurately and reported well," said Barrow.