Even with a number of contested local primary races, election officials in Mahoning and Trumbull counties expect low turnout.

Tom McCabe, Mahoning County Board of Elections director, said he predicts turnout for the May 5 primary in his county to be between 23% and 25%.

Stephanie Penrose, director of the Trumbull County Board of Elections, expects turnout to be around 25% for the primary in her county.

They both said that is largely because of noncompetitive primaries or uncontested ones for statewide elected office for Democrats and Republicans, as well as a lack of engagement by voters in countywide races.

“The local elections aren’t interesting to voters, yet those are the ones who decide if your street gets fixed and make other decisions that impact your life,” Penrose said. “Unfortunately, I don’t see turnout being high.”

McCabe said: “The governor and Senate races draw people and both sides are kind of decided.

With the lack of any high-profile races, turnout isn’t going to be good. There is some interest in the commissioner’s race (Republican primary), but not enough to change the turnout percentages.”

The turnout expectations from McCabe and Penrose are in line with other recent primaries in which the governor’s race was either largely uncontested, which is the case with Republicans this year, or unopposed, which is what’s happening with Democrats as Amy Acton is the only candidate seeking the party’s nomination.

In the May 2022 primary, the last time the governor’s position was on the ballot, turnout in Mahoning was 23.24% and 25.83% in Trumbull. State legislative maps were ruled unconstitutional by the Ohio Supreme Court during that primary so a second one for those positions, as well as state central committee seats for both parties, was held in August 2022 with turnout in Mahoning being 9.12% and Trumbull being 11.68%.

In the 2018 primary, which had competitive gubernatorial primaries for both political parties, turnout was 24.81% in Mahoning and 24.98% in Trumbull.

Turnout for the 2014 primary was 21.86% in Mahoning and 20.45% in Trumbull.

But turnout during presidential primaries with little to no competition is also low.

In 2024, it was 23.79% in Mahoning and 27.37% in Trumbull. In 2020, it was 23.36% in Mahoning and 27.94% in Trumbull.

In the 2016 presidential primary, which had heated races on both sides, turnout was 44.87% in Mahoning and 44.55% in Trumbull.

EARLY VOTING

Early voting for this primary starts Tuesday.

Early in-person voting takes place 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Friday.

It also runs 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 13 to 17 as well as April 20 to 24.

Early in-person voting runs 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 27, 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. April 28 and 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 29 to May 1.

It is 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 2, the Saturday before the primary, and 1 to 5 p.m. May 3, the Sunday before the primary.

The Trumbull office is at 2947 Youngstown Road SE, Warren.

The Mahoning office is at Oakhill Renaissance Place, 345 Oak Hill Ave., Youngstown.

The polls will be open May 5 from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

County election boards in Ohio will remain open until 9 p.m. Monday to allow people to register to vote in the upcoming primary election if they aren’t already registered voters. It’s the final day to do so.

To register in-person, you need either your driver’s license number or state ID and the last four digits of your Social Security number.

People can also register online at voteohio.gov, the Ohio secretary of state’s website, by 9 p.m. Monday.

NEW LAW

With this election, all ballots, including those by mail, must arrive at county boards of elections no later than 7:30 p.m. May 5, when polls close.

Previously, absentee ballots had to be postmarked by the day before the primary and arrive no later than four days after the primary to be counted. That was changed, effective with the May 2023 election, when there was a 10-day grace period for ballots to arrive at boards of elections.

The only voters who maintain the four-day grace period are those who cast ballots living overseas or in the military.

McCabe said: “If you vote by absentee, make sure you get it to us. It might be better to use the drop box or hand-deliver it to us before the polls close so your vote can be counted.”

With this election, voters who have a mismatch on a report sent by the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office to county boards on their birthdate, Social Security number or driver’s license ID must correct it before voting or cast a provisional ballot and provide the correct information within four days of the election. Those with the mismatch were sent letters informing them of the issue.

This impacts very few people. For example, there are about 130 in Trumbull, Penrose said.

An approved photo identification is needed to vote early in-person and at the polling locations.

To vote those ways, a person needs one of the following: a driver’s license, a state ID card, a passport, a passport card or a military ID.

Those who vote by mail can use either their driver’s license ID number or the last four digits of their Social Security number.