The first four days of early voting saw 238 Highland County voters cast ballots, including 137 that were mailed and 101 walk-in voters at the election board office.
Included in the total were 107 votes from within the city of Hillsboro, where a high-profile mayoral race between incumbent Republican Drew Hastings and Democratic challenger Pam Limes is taking place.
Early voting started last Tuesday, Oct. 6, and Debbie Craycraft, director of the Highland County Board of Elections, said the totals were through Friday. The board was closed Monday for the Columbus Day holiday.
Craycraft said the mailed ballots include people who requested that ballots be mailed to them, as well as people who took ballots with them from the election office.
In-person early voting in Highland County takes place in Hillsboro at the board office at 1575 N. High St., Suite 200. Hours of operation for the board office during early voting for the first three weeks are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on each weekday (Monday through Friday).
During week four of early voting, the hours will be:
• 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on each weekday (Monday through Friday).
• 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Saturday before Election Day
• 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the Sunday before Election Day
• 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Monday before Election Day.
In the Hillsboro mayor’s race in 2011, featuring Hastings and independent candidate John Levo, 1,622 total votes were cast, with Hastings winning 62 percent of the vote.
Other races across the county include township trustees, township fiscal officers, school board seats, various village council and mayoral contests, and a handful of local options.
There are contests for mayor in Leesburg, Mowrystown and the village of Highland, as well as a three-candidate race for mayor of Lynchburg.
In Lynchburg, incumbent mayor Gary Jones is being challenged by Terry Burden and Tim Heizer, a former Lynchburg police chief.
In Mowrystown, former Hillsboro City Council member Bonnie Parr is challenging longtime mayor Frank Terwilliger. In Leesburg, Mayor Danny Daulton is not seeking reelection. Wendy Holliday and Freddie Snyder are vying for that seat.
In the village of Highland, Jeremy Kibbey and Henry Smith are seeking the mayor’s post. But in Sinking Spring, no one filed for open seats for mayor and two council spots.
Reach Gary Abernathy at 937-393-3456 or on Twitter @abernathygary.
