Election 2024: Douglas County reports high turnout for early in-person voting

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) -- The countdown to Election Day is on. Even though the official date is on November 5, many have already voted early.

Mornings are busy right now at the Douglas County Election Commission. Election Commissioner Brian Kruse said it looks like they will be busy for the next few weeks.

On Thursday, Oct. 17 at 9 a.m., the line to vote early was almost out of the door. Kruse said this has been the case most mornings and around lunchtime, as many people are eager to cast their ballots.

“If you’re coming to vote early, you should plan to spend a half an hour to 45 minutes here at our office,” Kruse said.

Kruse said early voting numbers have been on the rise over the past couple of years, but 2024 could break records.

Compared to the 2020 election, he said in-person early voting is up.

He wasn’t able to provide exact figures for previous years for comparison, but so far this cycle, more than 3,500 people have already hit the voting booth in the county.

Kruse said normally, they don’t see long lines or numbers like this until about two weeks before Election Day.

“Mid-morning and mid-afternoon seem to be a little lighter,” Kruse said. “At this point, I think we’re probably on projection to have between 15 and 20,000 early voters come through our doors.”

Voters in Douglas County can cast their ballot in person, at the 120th and West Center office, until November 4. If you are voting on Election Day, you’ll go to your designated polling place. You can find where you are assigned to vote here.

Another way to vote early is by mail. The deadline to request that is Oct. 25 at 6:00 p.m.

To meet the growing demand for early voting, the Election Commission is staying open later on specific nights. Kruse said they will be open until 6:00 p.m. on Oct. 22, 24, 25, 29, and 30 for early voting.

The commission will also take early voters on two Saturdays: Oct. 26 and Nov. 2. Hours for those dates are 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Because of Nebraska’s new Voter ID law, you must provide a valid photo ID before voting.

Here are some examples of valid ID.

• Nebraska driver’s license
• Nebraska state ID
• U.S. passport
• Military ID
• Tribal ID
• Hospital, intermediate care facility, assisted-living facility or nursing home record
• Nebraska political subdivision ID (state, county, city, school, etc.)
• Nebraska college or university ID (public or private)

If you don’t have a valid photo ID, you can get one at the Nebraska DMV for free.

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