As the next-to-last day of in-person early voting wound down, nearly 30% of Bulloch County voters had cast ballots toward Tuesday’s runoffs.

Thursday, the final day of 2020, is also the last day for in-person early voting in Bulloch County, and the Board of Elections and Registration area in the County Annex, 113 North Main St., Statesboro, will be open for that purpose from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Drop boxes remain

The two drop boxes will remain available until the close of polls at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 5, for return of completed absentee ballots.

The indoor drop box is locked down on a table inside the back entrance of the County Annex in the elections office area. This box is available 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays.

But the red, white and blue freestanding outdoor drop box is available for deposit of absentee ballots completed by Bulloch County voters, only, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is in the parking area of the same complex but behind the North Main Annex, 115 N. Main St., near the cell tower. A warning notice about who may legally deposit a ballot on a voter’s behalf, and who may not, is posted on the box.

Over 13,000 so far

As of 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, 8,424 Bulloch County residents had voted early in-person, and 4,838 more had returned mailed-out absentee ballots, reported Elections Supervisor Patricia Lanier Jones. So the total was 13,262, or 29.6% of the county’s 44,738 registered voters, participating at that point.

But a socially distanced line of voters appeared outside the annex, and voting continued until 5 p.m. Wednesday, so cumulative turnout continued toward 30%.

The elections office staff had also mailed 1,628 absentee ballots to voters who had yet to return them.

Tuesday ends it

Bulloch County registered voters who have not taken advantage of early or absentee voting can vote at their assigned place in 15 of the county’s 16 traditional precinct locations Tuesday, Jan. 5, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

The total is now 15 Election Day voting places, since the Fair Precinct has been temporarily reassigned to share Pittman Park United Methodist Church with its usual precinct voters Tuesday only. The reasons for this emergency move are explained in a separate story.

The runoff between Republican incumbent David Perdue and Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff is for a full six-year term in the U.S. Senate and the one between appointed Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler and Democratic challenger Raphael Warnock to complete the remainder of retired Sen. Johnny Isakson’s term, through 2022, continue to draw national attention. But Georgians are also deciding a lesser-known contest between Republican Lauren “Bubba” McDonald Jr. and Democrat Daniel Blackman for McDonald’s current seat on the Georgia Public Service Commission.