Putnam County seeing a slight uptick in early voting numbers, as other counties across the Upper Cumberland are experiencing a slow down.
Putnam County Election Administrator Jennifer Murphy said she predicts nearly 30 percent total voter turnout for this election, compared to just 12 percent back in 2022.
“We have more candidates on the ballot this time, so it’s drawn a lot more attention,” Murphy said. “Everybody’s probably seen a million signs all over Putnam County. So, I think just having additional candidates on the ballot has really brought people out.”
Officials in Overton and White County said early voter turnout is below ten percent a week before Election Day. Overton County Administrator Craig Story said with the low turnout, candidates are valuing each vote even more.
“You know, it’s hard,” Story said. “They’ve got to stay motivated, and right now, it’s just every vote is going to be very important to them.”
Fentress Elections Administrator Joey Williams said early voting in Fentress County has slowed to a crawl with just 846 registered. Williams said it is the county’s first May primary election since 1968.
Early voting ends on Thursday at 4pm.