Voter turnout is up in West Tennessee

JACKSON, Tenn. — “We have had a great early voting period,” said Kim Buckley, administrator of elections in Madison County.

For almost two weeks, Tennesseans have been early voting for the midterm elections.

“We have nearly exceeded 15,000 votes, and that’s more than we have ever voted in a November midterm election,” Buckley said.

On Tuesday morning, people were lining up to vote in Madison County 30 minutes before the polls opened.

Several election commissions on Tuesday said the lines they’re seeing for early voting are more comparable to presidential elections than midterms.

Gibson County has had more than 5,000 votes cast between their two early voting locations.

Hardin and Henderson counties have both had more than 3,000 votes cast, saying it’s more than this time four years ago.

And as for the reason behind the big turnouts?

“Something has caught the imagination of the electorate,” Buckley said. “I couldn’t say exactly what, but I’m just so pleased that so many people are participating.”

If you are planning to early vote, make sure you bring a form of ID with you issued by the state of Tennessee or the federal government.

Early voting wraps up on Thursday.