Voters turn out across Bryan County on Election Day

BRYAN COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - Thousands of people are taking to the polls across Georgia on Election Day.

Voters visited precincts in Bryan County to cast ballots in an election that features several contested races and votes on key issues.

Early voting, Election Day numbers

During the early voting period, 4,700 Bryan County voters turned in ballots.

On Election Day, 600 people voted across the 10 precincts spread out across the county by 11 a.m.

By 2 p.m., 2,000 people had voted.

Election officials said overall, they have not run into a lot of issues and have seen consistent traffic at the polls throughout the day.

One thing that caught voters off guard was the length of the ballot, which features several state and local races along with an Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, or ESPLOST, vote.

“Just think, a lot of voters are surprised by how much is on the ballot. So, we are really encouraging people to please read your sample ballots before you come out and vote,” said Olivia Chapman, Bryan County elections supervisor.

Polling location questions

Some voters don’t know their polling location. Those with questions about their polling location are asked to call the Bryan County Office of Elections. At some polling places, there is a QR code to scan to track down polling locations.

Polls close at 7 p.m.

Bryan County has 39,000 registered voters. Election officials hope about 20%, or 7,800 registered voters, cast their ballot.

First-time voters hit the polls

Some people are visiting the polls for the first time, while others have been making the trip for years.

Tuesday, two recent graduates, who wanted to give their grandmother a special Mother’s Day gift, decided to go to the polls with her on Election Day.

This was the first-time that Giana and Josiya Marshall could vote in an election.

The set of twins recently graduated from high school and thought it would be a good idea to exercise their right to vote in Richmond Hill.

The twins described their voting process as easy and said it went by faster than they expected.

They say what helped make the process easier was researching the candidates and issues that would be on the ballot before walking inside the precinct.

“Tried to make sure that we were voting for the right people and voting for if they were supporting us and us as a community,” said Giana Marshall, First-time voter.

Both say that this won’t be the last time they cast their ballots.

They say they will back for future elections and will hopefully bring their friends along, so they can exercise their right.