BY BRENNAN D. CRAIN, WCLU News
GLASGOW — About 12 percent of Barren County voters have already cast ballots, according to unofficial preliminary numbers from the Barren County Clerk’s Office.
Barren County Clerk Helena Birdwell said 4,172 voters marked ballots during the three days of early voting across Kentucky last week. Of those, 1,341 voted Thursday; 1,402 voted Saturday; and 1,244 voted Saturday.
There are 32,737 registered voters in the county, according to the Kentucky State Board of Elections. Of those, 13,849 are Democratic and 16,294 are Republican. The remainder comprises parties such as Independents, Libertarians and those who identify with “other.”
More women are registered in Barren County than men. Of the voters, 17,378 are women and 15,351 are men.
There were 32,477 registered voters during the May primary this year. Of those, 14,275 were registered Democrats while 15,770 were Republican. There appears to be a growing divide between the Democratic and Republican bases in Barren County.
What was once a heavily Democratic county has now shifted to a larger Republican partisanship. Many of the candidates running for office this year are Republicans, which made for a slim primary for many Democrats.
Six days of early-excused voting took place before last week’s unexcused early voting. That time was reserved for voters who were unable to vote on Election Day or the other period of early voting. Birdwell said 185 people voted that way.
The number of absentee ballots was not final as of Monday morning. Voters have until 6 p.m. Tuesday to return those to the clerk’s office.
Election Day
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8 across the United States. Polls will open at 6 a.m. local time and remain open until 6 p.m. As a reminder, any voter in line to vote by 6 p.m. will not be turned away.
View a sample Barren County ballot here. Find your county’s general election ballot here.
There are eight voting centers in Barren County for the 2022 General Election. Any registered voter may vote at any one of these locations. Former precincts are no longer used. Centers are listed below.
- Austin Tracy Volunteer Fire Department
- 2542 Austin Tracy Rd. – Austin, KY 42156
- Barren Co. High School gymnasium
- 507 Trojan Trail – Glasgow, KY 42141
- Beckton Community Center
- 2244 Beckton Road – Glasgow, KY 42141
- Cave City Convention Center
- 502 Mammoth Cave St. – Cave City, KY 42127
- Haywood Volunteer Fire Department]
- 67 Matthews Mill Rd – Glasgow, KY 42141
- Hiseville Volunteer Fire Department
- 112 W. Hiseville Main St. – Cave City, KY 42127
- Park City Lions Club
- 2025 Brown Rd – Park City, KY 42160
- Temple Hill Volunteer Fire Department
- 8543 Tompkinsville Rd – Glasgow, KY 42141