Board of Elections sending out 9,500 absentee ballots by mail in coming week

SHEFFIELD TWP. — The first of 9,500 ballots Lorain County voters have requested be mailed to them at their homes for primary voting will go out today, Board of Elections Director Paul Adams said. Adams said the first 5,000 ballots will go out to those who requested them, and the remainder will go out next week. "We've been telling people they will receive them in the next week or so," Adams said. The vote-by-mail absentee voting period has been extended to April 28. While the lobby of the elections offices is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. only, workers still are answering the phones from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The board's phone number remains (440) 326-5900. Requests for absentee ballot forms also will be placed in the vestibule of the office, so that voters who wish to fill them out or drop off completed forms may do so even when the lobby is closed, Adams said.Forms also may be filled out at home and then submitted by printing them off the elections website. The board on Thursday also voted to spend $900 for a postal-grade drop-off box to be installed outside the Board of Elections offices at 1985 North Ridge Road. All of the actions are to ensure social distancing guidelines are observed while the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect public life in the state. "We want to be as accommodating as possible, but also be mindful of the health of our employees and the voters," Adams said. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com. Follow him at @daveobrienCT on Twitter.