Voters waited in lines for about 90 minutes on Monday at the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections. A spokesman said strong voter interest in Tuesday's primary brought more than 700 people to vote in the Board's Cleveland office. In Hamilton County, elections officials said their Columbus offices were very hectic as voters came out to avoid poor weather forecast for election day. Rain and ice are expected for the western part of Ohio. Freezing rain, snow and sleet are predicted for Northeast Ohio.
Voter Joyce Jackson was one of 200 people waiting Monday afternoon to cast her ballot in Columbus.
Joyce Jackson: I've been here maybe 35 minutes. It's better today than it is going to be tomorrow. The lines are going to be terrible tomorrow and I didn't want to wait three to four hours just to vote.
Franklin County extended absentee voting hours until 9pm last night to accommodate the record demand. One wonders if Tuesday's heavy voting might also cause officials to make changes. The polls are scheduled to close at 7:30pm.
Mhari Saito, 90.3.