Lines long for many early voters

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Updated: October 28, 2012 3:21AM

Preliminary results are in, and it appears early voting is a smash hit.

Local election authorities were scrambling this week to accommodate a robust turnout of voters ready and willing to cast their ballots well ahead of Election Day. Although the votes won’t be tabulated until Nov. 6, registered voters have the opportunity to weigh in on candidates and propositions through Nov. 3 if they elect not to wait until the traditional first Tuesday in November.

After the early voting period opened Monday morning, long lines formed each day. By midweek, officials laid plans for expanding the space and equipment being used at several of the dozen DuPage County locations for early voting, including Naperville’s Municipal Center.

“Currently, voters have to wait in line; additional machines will shorten the wait,” wrote Bob Saar, executive director of the DuPage County Election Commission, in a report to the commission board Thursday evening.

In DuPage County, an average of more than 5,000 constituents cast their ballots each day. With 12 days to go before polling places spring to life, almost 7 percent of the county’s electorate has voted via early, absentee or grace-period methods.

Will County saw an average of more than 2,400 vote early each day this week.

“We’ve been very steady, and all my sites have been busy, too,” said Nancy Schultz Voots, Will County clerk, who attributes the large turnout to the voter information guide she mailed to all county residents.

Both Will and DuPage have reported sharp increases in requests for absentee ballots, which are another option for all registered voters.

The Naperville city clerk’s office in the Municipal Center, one of 30 early voting sites for Will County residents, reported 597 early ballots cast over the four days.

“I think tomorrow’s going to be busy,” clerk Nancy Leary said Friday morning.

A separate space in the Municipal Center basement is reserved for DuPage County residents to cast ballots. Both sites, and nine others in DuPage, will be open next Saturday, the final day of early voting.

“It’s been pretty busy, so that’s a good sign,” said Joe Sobecki, the DuPage Election Commission’s assistant executive director.

Naperville resident David Goldberg, a College of DuPage political science professor, also sees the robust response to early and absentee voting as a good sign.

“I think any time that you can increase voter turnout, that’s a good thing for the process,” he said.

While some observers say the advance voting benefits Democratic candidates, Goldberg isn’t ready to make a call yet.

“The part I haven’t seen in turnout reports is how much enthusiasm is partisan?” Goldberg said, noting that Democrats came out early in the largest numbers in 2008, while Republicans were more numerous in the 2010 midterm contests. “In 2012, it’s a mix of both.”