MOLINE, Illinois — Dozens of voters braved a chilly Monday morning to cast their ballot at the Quad Cities campus of Western Illinois University. This is Rock Island County's second early voting location.
"I thought it was good because I think people are coming on their days off or making time for it which is important," Voter Mirella Perez says.
The line to vote stretched out in the parking lot, and Rock Island County Clerk Karen Kinney says the site saw a good turnout for its first day. She says this location was normally slow in past election years.
"If it keeps up at this pace, I think were going to set a record for this location," she says.
In past election years, satellite voting locations were spread out across the county, but this year, this site is the only satellite voting location in the county.
"We did have more satellite vote centers open, such as Milan, Silvis and the Moline Public Library, which we backed off this time because of the vote-by-mail," Kinney says. "This was for the purpose of keeping the voters safe from the COVID-19."
Kinney says the county clerk's office has sent out nearly 25,000 vote-by-mail ballots so far, beating past records.
"Vote-by-mail has taken us by storm," she says. And, she expects early voting to be just as popular.
"I think it's important, if you can get in and get your vote in now, it's a good thing," Voter Julius Williams says.
The site at the Quad Cities campus of Western Illinois University will be open through October 30th, from 11 A.M. to 7 P.M. Early voting is also taking place at the county clerk's office for the next two weeks, from 8 A.M. to 7 P.M. on weekdays and from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. on the weekends.