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Early voting is off to a strong start in Beaufort County, reports from the local Board of Elections office show. More than 16 percent of voters (or 5,561 voters) in the county have cast their ballots at either the Board of Elections office or in Chocowinity. 

Early voting began last Thursday, Oct. 17 and saw over 2,014 ballots cast. The next day, there were 1,685 voters, and on Monday, Oct. 21 there were 1,862 voters. Combined totals for Thursday and Friday equate to 10.6 percent of all voters in Beaufort County. 

Should voting continue to remain strong, this election could break records, Director of Beaufort County Board of Elections, Kellie Hopkins said. Both presidential candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump encouraged their supporters to vote early at their respective campaign rallies in Greenville over the last week. It remains to be seen whether voter turnout sees high participation numbers on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5 in Beaufort County. 

Early voting numbers in this election are beginning to rival those from the 2020 election. Early voting began on Oct. 15 and saw 1,963 ballots cast between votes taken at the Board of Elections and in Chocowinity. The following day, 1,709 ballots were cast between both locations. Because of the pandemic, polling sites were open on Saturdays. On the first Saturday (Oct. 17), there were 754 ballots cast for a three-day total of 4,426 or 9.9 percent of all voters in Beaufort County. In total, 17,499 ballots were cast during early voting. 

Early voting will continue until 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2. Polling sites in Aurora and Belhaven will be open from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. starting Wednesday, Oct. 30. All four polling locations in Beaufort County will be open on Saturday, Nov. 2 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The four polling sites for early voting in Beaufort County are located at: 

Beaufort County Board of Elections (1308 Highland Drive #104, Washington). Open from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Chocowinity Fire Department (512 E NC HWY 33, Chocowinity). Open from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Aurora Community Center (442 3rd St, Aurora) Open starting Oct. 30 from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

John A. Wilkinson Center (144 W Main St, Belhaven) Open starting Oct. 30 from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.