The Owensboro Sportscenter will serve as the lone polling place for anyone in Daviess County who wants to vote in person in the June 23 Primary Election. The polls will be open from 6 a.m.-6 p.m.
Daviess County Deputy Clerk Richard House said they decided to move the in-person polling place from the Courthouse to the Sportscenter because of parking and space issues.
“The Sportscenter allows us to accommodate social distancing because it has a bigger area,” House said. “Anyone can vote there except for those who’ve already done a paper ballot.”
The site will accommodate both disabled and able-bodied citizens by offering paper and electronic ballots.
There will be up to 100 voting booths available, House said. There will also be 10 stations available for residents to check-in at.
House said he’s not sure how long the lines will be, so the Clerk’s Office is still encouraging residents to cast their votes via absentee ballot.
In-office absentee voting will be conducted at the Daviess County Courthouse June 1-22 on Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. This will be done by appointment only, and residents can call 270-240-5771 to make an appointment.
The Clerk’s Office is also encouraging people to use the online portal to complete an application to receive a paper absentee ballot. Residents can go to GoVoteKy.com and complete an application to receive a paper absentee ballot, and a prepaid postage envelope will be included for returning the ballot.
Those without internet access or needing assistance can call 270-240-5771 to make an appointment.
A dropbox for paper ballots will be available at the courthouse each day. The dropbox is located in the center of the courthouse, House said.
He said there are several reasons the Clerk’s Office is only offering one polling place this year. A shortage of poll workers, the safety of workers, and exponential cleaning costs all contributed to the decision.
“Poll workers who are senior citizens don’t want to work the polls this year, and the younger people working them want to get back to work and don’t have the time,” House said. “We’re in a bit of a time crunch.”
The Clerk’s Office has to pay for a deep cleaning at the Sportscenter after election day, which will cost them upwards of $2,000.
“The cost of the election would be astronomical if we had more than one polling place,” he said. “That’s why we picked the biggest site we had available, so we could accommodate more people.”
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