Election Day is here: What you should know about how it will work in Lorain County

Polls open today at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m. Don't know where to vote? Look up your polling place: voteloraincountyohio.gov/find-polling-location. Need some last-minute help catching up on candidates and issues? Read our 2020 Election Guide - free. Today is the day. After two years of campaigning, polling, speculation, debates and mud-slinging, the U.S. presidential election will be decided. That doesn't mean we'll know the outcome tonight — with millions of mail-in ballots potentially in transit, it could be days before President Donald Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden can definitively declare victory. The picture in Lorain County has a good chance of being clear tonight. As of Monday afternoon, 92 percent of local residents who requested mail-in ballots had completed and returned them to the Lorain County Board of Elections, according to Director Paul Adams. That's roughly 60,000 ballots cast by mail or returned directly via drop box. In-person early voting also shattered records. In the last presidential contest in 2016, there were 20,502 early votes. This year, there were 35,983 when the polls closed Monday afternoon. Adams said workers had to turn away more voters who showed up late, telling them their only option is to vote at their neighborhood polling stations today. Adams, a Democrat, and elections Deputy James Kramer, a Republican, have differing off-the-record views about politics. But on this they agree: Lorain County turnout in 2020 is primed to set new records. When President George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004, the highest percentage of Lorain County voters ever turned out, at 72.76 percent. And when President Barack Obama was elected in 2008, the largest number of county ballots ever was cast, at 148,218. Conditions are ripe to surpass both. "I think the weather looks really good. I think you're going to have decent turnout, especially in the southern part of the county," such as Wellington, where in-person voting tends to be favored, Adams said. Incredible early voting numbers have erased most fears of long lines at the polls, he said. The big exception is in some areas — Amherst, west Lorain, Avon and Avon Lake, for example — where a large number of people usually vote before their commute into Cleveland. Adams said that if they all show up in the same early morning window, it could stretch waits. And the lengthy ballot language for the city of Lorain charter commission issue could also take some time to navigate, which could slow the process. Inside polling locations, workers will wear masks, and some will have face shields. A check-in station will offer hand sanitizer for voters. A sanitized stylus will be used to sign in and cast your ballot, and voting machines will be wiped down between each use. Adams said an "overwhelming" number of residents volunteered to work the polls, which means they'll be at full manpower. A drive-thru drop box will remain available at the Board of Elections office in Sheffield Township while the polls are open today. But don't expect to be able to vote there in person — ballots can only be cast today at the county's 75 neighborhood polling locations. Not sure where yours is? Visit www.voteloraincountyohio.gov and click the "Polling Place Lookup" button. Because of the pandemic, some polling locations have moved, specifically ones that previously had been at nursing homes and long-term care facilities. Adams said notices were sent in yellow envelopes to all affected voters. As they have in all modern elections, Republicans and Democrats have applied to have legally recognized observers present at the polls across Lorain County. Under state law, they are allowed to watch the proceedings for issues but cannot talk to voters, talk on their phones or take photos. Ohio law does not recognize self-appointed "poll watchers" who did not apply or meet the criteria to observe. Adams said a number of voters have contacted his office with concerns that armed groups could stage demonstrations near the polls, but there is no evidence such rallies are planned. There have been conversations with chiefs of police about how to respond, though. The Second Amendment offers wide protection to political demonstrations, but the law also prohibits firearms in certain areas and from being used to intimidate voters, Adams said. "No voter should have to choose between their safety and making their voice heard at the ballot box," ACLU of Ohio Policy Director Jocelyn Rosnick said in a statement last week, anticipating the possibility of interference at the polls. "We know that voter intimidation disproportionately threatens the rights and safety of Black and Brown communities who have been historically and grossly suppressed." The statement was made in response to Trump, who urged supporters in the first presidential debate to "go into the polls and watch very carefully" on Election Day. The first batch of voting results will be posted shortly after the polls close at 7:30 p.m. They'll include mail-in ballots and early in-person voting totals. In a normal year, they'd represent a small slice of the pie, but this year they could account for up to two-thirds of Lorain County's ballots, according to Adams and Kramer. Unlike in some states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio elections officials are allowed to open, review and scan absentee ballots in the weeks prior to Election Day. That means early votes are waiting to be tabulated at the push of a computer button. Adams said he expects more than 95 percent of local ballots to be counted tonight. "I'm praying for a good night. I'm saying by 11 o'clock," Kramer predicted. Under a new directive from Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, the timetable to have all votes certified has been moved up. Boards of elections previously had until Nov. 23 to resolve any issues with ballots and provide their final counts. That deadline is now 1 p.m. on Nov. 18. Contact Jason Hawk at (440) 329-7122 or news@lcnewspapers.com.