ELECTION DAY IS HERE
What to know before hitting the polls
Election Day 2018 is here, featuring whitehot governor races in Tennessee and Georgia and a Tennessee U.S. Senate race that could either cement or rock the Republican balance in that chamber.
The race to replace U.S. Sen. Bob Corker is a nail-biter, with U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, a Trump loyalist, and moderate Democrat and two-time governor Phil Bredesen running neck and neck. In the Tennessee governor race, Republican businessman Bill Lee is polling comfortably ahead of former Nashville mayor Karl Dean.
In Georgia, it’s the governor race that’s dominating the news. Democrat Stacey Abrams is hoping to become the first black woman governor in U.S. history, while Republican Brian Kemp aligns himself with
President Donald Trump.
There are multiple state and U.S. House and Senate races on both states’ ballots, as well as municipal elections in several Hamilton County municipalities and a proposed Chattanooga charter amendment defining the jurisdiction of City Court.
According to the Tennessee secretary of state’s office, voters cast more than 1.3 million ballots during early voting. And Georgia officials said early ballots set a new record at just more than 2 million.
The day will start out wet, with the possibility of downed limbs and flood debris from heavy overnight storms, WRCBTV 3 meteorologist Brittany Beggs said. She said the skies will clear and temperatures will rise by afternoon.
POLL HOURS
In Tennessee, polling hours vary by county and time zone.
Polls will be open in Hamilton and Rhea counties from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Elsewhere, polls will open at various times but all will close at 8 p.m. Eastern or 7 p.m. Central time. McMinn, Meigs and Polk counties will open at 9 a.m. EST.
In the Central time
zone, Franklin County voting begins at 7 a.m., while Coffee, Marion and Grundy County polls open at 8 and Bledsoe and Sequatchie at 9. The Elder Mountain, River Canyon and Walden’s Ridge precincts in Marion County will operate on Eastern time.
Georgia polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. EST in all 159 counties.
VOTER ID
In Tennessee: A state-issued driver’s license; U.S. passport; photo ID from the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, federal or Tennessee state government; U.S. military photo ID; Tennessee handgun carry permit with photo. An expired ID is acceptable if it meets other requirements. College student IDs and those not issued by the federal or Tennessee government, including library cards and photo IDs issued by other states, will not be accepted.
› Voters without an acceptable photo ID may cast a provisional ballot. They must bring their ID to the election commission office within two days after the election and sign an affidavit for their vote to be counted.
› Unsure about your ID? Contact your county election commission or the Tennessee Division of Elections at 1-877-850-4959.
In Georgia: Any valid state or federal government-issued photo ID, including a free ID card issued by a Georgia county registrar’s office or the Georgia Department of Driver Services. Valid photo student IDs from Georgia colleges and universities and valid tribal photo IDs also are accepted.
Find out more at www. sos.ga.gov/elections, or call 1-877-725-9797 or the county registrar’s office.
NEED A RIDE?
CARTA is offering rides to the polls between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Call 423402-0077.
Others offering rides include #GoVoteCHA, Lyft and Uber. ChattyWagon will carry voters to the Dogwood Manor precinct on Gateway Avenue or the Olivet Baptist Church precinct on M.L. King Boulevard.