KNOXVILLE, Tenn — Early voting for the Knoxville city election wrapped up Thursday with a tally of 6,474 votes cast, representing just a fraction of those eligible to vote and those who have taken part in recent elections, figures show.
In addition to the 6,474 early votes cast, the Knox County Election Commission had tallied 793 absentee votes as of Friday, according to Chris Davis, elections administrator.
Election Day itself is Tuesday, Nov. 7. As a rule of thumb, Davis has said that typically an equal number of voters cast ballots on the day itself as do during the early period.
If that holds, total turnout may end up being between 14,000 and 15,000.
Polls will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. You must vote in your designated precinct.
A reminder: If you live outside the city, you are not eligible to vote in this election.
The city judge's position, three at-large City Council seats and the 5th District council seat are in play.
For the city primary in August, 16,648 votes were cast. The primary included the mayor's race, which incumbent Indya Kincannon won outright.
According to Davis, 67,830 registered voters in the city took part in the 2020 presidential election. Of that group, 6,618 have voted in the city's current election.
There are about 102,000 registered voters in the city of Knoxville.
As is usual in the city, older voters make up the bulk of those who cast ballots during the early period, according to Davis's statistics. There were 5,355 people age 55 and older who voted; there were 1,353 people age 35 to 54; and there were 559 people age 18 to 34 who voted.
Here's what voting trends have shown in city of Knoxville elections:
*November 2019, which included a competitive mayor's race: 25,614 total votes cast and 10,878 early votes cast.
*November 2015, which lacked a mayor's race to draw voters: 5,440 total votes cast and 1,606 early votes cast.
*November 2011, which included a competitive mayor's race and a state Senate race to draw voters: 27,043 total votes cast and 11,165 early votes cast.
*November 2007, which lacked a competitive mayor's race: 5,677 total votes cast and 1,593 early votes cast.
*November 2003, which featured a competitive mayor's race: 13,175 total votes cast and 4,374 early votes cast.
