Where to vote in Siloam Springs

Siloam Springs residents will have five local vote centers to choose from when casting their ballots on election day.

Benton County has vote centers, which means residents can vote at any of the 34 sites across the county on election day, according to Channing Barker, Benton County communications director. Polling places throughout the state will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 3.

Benton County has already seen record early voting and absentee voting. As of Thursday, 77,627 individuals, or 43 percent of registered Benton County voters, had already voted compared to 66,721 total early voters for the entire November 2016 election, according to the Benton County Clerk’s Office. Early voting will continue through Monday.

At the end of the day Thursday, the county had sent 16,155 absentee ballots and received 13,352 back, according to Kim Dennison, election coordinator for the Benton County Election Commission. A total of 2,903 ballots were still out, she said.

In comparison, the most absentee ballots the county has ever processed during a previous presidential election was 2,900, she said.

Because of the record turnout it will be important for people to

have a plan for voting on Election Day, Barker said. There may be long lines, not only because of turnout but also because of social distancing requirements inside vote centers, she said.

“We just really ask for the public’s patience and for them to plan their vote as much as possible, plan out the location you are going to vote at and save time to vote,” she said.

Safety procedures in place for Election Day will be similar to those used for early voting, including social distancing for poll workers and voters, personal protective equipment for poll workers, frequent cleaning of voting machines and safety signage, Barker said.

“Wellness and safety is our number one priority while people are exercising their right to vote during this election,” Barker said. “It’s a very unusual time during this pandemic to vote but our job is to insure everyone will have the ability to vote and do that safely.”

Masks and face coverings for voters and poll workers across the state are strongly encouraged but not required, according to Arkansas mask mandate, signed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson in July.

Vote centers within the Siloam Springs zip code are:

• First Christian Church of Siloam Springs located at 1405 W. Jefferson St.

• St. Mary Catholic Church Parish Hall located at 1998 U.S. Hwy. 412.

• Logan Community Building located at 15249 Logan Road.

• Siloam Springs Community Building located at 110 N. Mt. Olive St.

• Highfill Baptist Church located at 11912 S. Main St.

For more information, visit vote.bentoncountyar.gov.