CLEVELAND — While more and more will head to the polls early, beginning Oct. 8, those who wait until Election Day may find their polling place not as close and convenient as before.
A News 5/ABC News investigation revealed that voters must travel further in many parts of Northeast Ohio if they plan on voting on Election Day.
Records requests to local Board of Election offices revealed that in many places, counties saw at least a 20% decline in the number of different polling locations.
For example, Cuyahoga County offered 423 different polling places for the November 2012 Presidential Election. In 2024, that number is slated to be 289 different Election Day polling locations, a 31% decline.
Here's what other counties saw:
- Cuyahoga County: 423 polling places in 2012, 289 in 2024 (31% decline)
- Ashland County: 24 polling places in 2012, 14 in 2024 (41% decline)
- Geauga County: 41 polling places in 2012, 31 in 2024 (24% decline)
- Portage County: 71 polling places in 2012, 54 in 2024 (23% decline)
- Richland County: 49 polling places in 2012, 34 in 2024 (30% decline)
- Summit County: 151 polling places in 2012, 156 in 2024 (4% increase)
- Stark County: 160 polling places in 2012, 107 in 2024 (33% decline)
Several counties in Northeast Ohio did not respond in time to News 5's request for data, while others admitted they no longer kept the list of polling locations from 2012.
RELATED: Everything you need to know about the 2024 elections in Ohio
Of the seven counties that fully responded, only Summit County saw its number of polling locations increase.
While the number of votes being cast in an election has remained fairly consistent, Kayla Griffin Green, Ohio director for the non-partisan advocacy group All Voting is Local, told News 5 that fewer polling locations can put a strain on how elections are run and how voters head to the polls.
"Elections are getting more difficult," she said. "To go to vote somewhere near your home is really important so you can go on with your day because Election Day is not a national holiday. "It's really difficult if someone has to drive or take the bus to a location far away from their home."
Griffin Green encourages voters to plan for Election Day, which could involve mapping out their day and where to go and confirming a polling location has not changed.
Claudia Zimmerman of South Euclid enjoyed walking to her polling place for years.
"There's just a camaraderie of knowing you're surrounded by people who care as much about democracy as you do when you walk into a booth," she explained.
But like punch cards and hanging chads, walking to a polling place became a relic of elections past when the church she voted at closed as a polling location in 2023.
"First couple years we lived here, we voted in person," she said. "Last year, everything changed."
That meant the end of her four-minute walk, and instead, she was redirected to another polling location that would mean a 35-minute walk.
"We just didn’t want to drive that far if we didn’t have to, so we have started voting by mail," she said.
Mike West, manager of Community Outreach at the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections, argues that reducing polling places makes more sense.
"The reduction of polling locations is an efficiency," West said.
He points to the rise in vote by mail, voting early and the speed of processing voters electronically, which can help keep the long lines shorter as factors behind the combining of polling locations.
But sometimes, he admits losing a polling location is outside their control.
"We have to inspect all our voting locations to make sure they’re ADA compliant," he said. "Sometimes the school, church or library, they might be under renovations or they might decide they don't want us there anymore."
A nonpartisan helpline has been created if you have any questions or concerns about voting.
Call or text 1-866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer in English.
The hotline also comes in different languages
- Spanish: 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682)
- Asian languages: 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683)
- Arabic: 844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287)
To find your Ohio polling location, click here.
ABC News Data Journalist Maia Rosenfeld contributed to this report.
Clay LePard is a special projects reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on Twitter @ClayLePard or on Facebook Clay LePard News 5.
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