Haven't Voted Yet? You're in the Minority

People who go to the polls on Election Day are quickly becoming the minority in Lakewood.

Almost a quarter of all registered Lakewood voters have already cast their ballots for the Nov. 6 general election.

A report from the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections shows that as of Sunday, 8,967 Lakewood residents had requested vote-by-mail ballots, and 7,194 had already returned them.

While turnout at the polls on Tuesday isn't yet known, it's clear that a significant percentage of Lakewood voters will cast ballots by mail in this Presidential election.

Voting by mail has been increasing in popularity here.

Compare this year’s tally with the 2011 general election, when about 4,181 requested absentee ballots and of those, 3,680 cast ballots by mail.

The trend has changed the way candidates and supporters campaign for races and issues.  

Campaigns have to start weeks earlier than they used to because a last-minute push would only reach about 20 percent of the participating voters.

Absentee ballot applications were mailed to all Cuyahoga County residents for this election after the county and state battled and reached an agreement.

There are 36,507 registered voters in Lakewood, according to the Board of Elections.

The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections reported on its Facebook page that Sunday was a “busy day” for early voting. As of 5 p.m., 1,798 people had voted at the Board of Elections.

“We are not done yet,” according to the post. “Everyone who was in line as of 5 p.m. will be able to vote (Sunday). The Board will be open for early voting Monday from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.”