KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Before You Vote is an ongoing project by 10News to promote and inspire your participation in the democratic process. Be a good citizen! Take time to vote!
It's election season once again in East Tennessee. Early voting started on July 12 and will run through July 27. Voters are expected to return to the ballot box and cast their votes in elections that will determine who will serve in many positions of local government.
Voters will also decide who they want to see run in some upcoming state and federal elections. The state and federal primary elections will choose who will appear as candidates in the November general elections.
Information about the elections across East Tennessee, including where people can vote, is available below.
In March, voter turnout was low during the Super Tuesday elections in Knox County. Chris Davis, the county's administrator of elections, previously said about 25,000 people voted early in that election. Advocates and leaders hope that changes in this election.
During early voting, people can cast a ballot at a variety of locations. The Knox County Election Commission also added three new early-voting locations for this election, hoping to reach more people and give more voters the chance to easily cast a ballot.
Generally, early voting locations are open from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. on weekdays and from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Saturdays. They are usually closed on Sundays and are also open until 7 p.m. on Fridays. However, the City County Building, Meridian Baptist Church and Karns Senior Center have special hours on some days.
A full list of early voting locations in Knox County is below.
- Gibbs Ruritan Club, 7827 Tazewell Pike, Corryton
- Knox County Election Commission west office, 109 Lovell Heights Road
- Carter Elementary School, 8455 Strawberry Plains Pike
- City-County Building – Main Assembly Room, 400 Main Street
- Downtown West, 1645 Downtown West Blvd., Unit 40
- Eternal Life Harvest Center at Five Points, 2410 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
- Knoxville Expo Center, 5441 Clinton Highway
- Meridian Baptist Church, 6513 Chapman Highway
- New Harvest Park, 4775 New Harvest Lane
- Halls Recreation Center, 6933 Recreation Lane
- Karns Senior Center, 8042 Oak Ridge Highway
Ahead of the election, WBIR also reached out to speak with as many candidates as possible. You can watch the discussions with different candidates here.
Sample ballots are also available online, giving people a chance to see who is running before they enter the ballot box. Those sample ballots are available below.
Generally, Anderson County's early voting locations are open from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. They are open from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays. The early voting locations are available below.
- Clinton Community Center: 101 South Hicks Street, Clinton
- Midtown Community Center: 102 Robertsville Road, Oak Ridge
- Anderson County Government Office: 3324 Andersonville Highway, Andersonville
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
There is a contested race for Anderson County Commission's District 6 seat, as well as for the school board's District 3 seat. Three candidates are running for the school board's District 5 seat.
Generally, Blount County's early voting locations are open from 11 a.m. through 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, with the exception of Pellissippi Campus. That location is open from 8 a.m. through 4 p.m. on weekdays and is not open over the weekend. The Blount County Public Library is also open for early voting from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. on Saturday.
A full list of locations is available below.
- Blount County Public Library: 508 North Cusick Street, Maryville
- Everett Gym: 318 South Everett High Road, Maryville
- Pellissippi Campus: 2731 West Lamar Alexander Parkway, Friendsville
- Providence Baptist Church Annex: 5766 Sevierville Road, Seymour
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
There is a race to be the county's Assessor of Property and for the county's District 2 and District 4 school board seats. There is also a race to serve on Townsend's City Commission.
Campbell County has two voting locations, listed below. The times they are expected to be open were not immediately available.
- Campbell County Election Commission Office: 129 Church Alley, Jacksboro
- Jellico Municipal Building: 410 South Main Street, Jellico
A sample ballot for the election is available online.
Three independent candidates are running to serve as the county's Assessor of Property, and two candidates are running for the school board's District 1, District 2, District 3, District 4 and District 5 seats.
Generally, Claiborne County's early voting locations are open between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. until 12 p.m. on Saturdays. They are closed on Sundays. There are three locations to vote early in the county, available below.
- Election Commission Office: 1802 Main Street, Tazewell
- Harrogate City Building: 138 Harrogate Crossing, Harrogate
- South Claiborne Fire Department: 3711 Hwy 33 South, New Tazewell
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Two independent candidates are running to be the county trustee, and two independent candidates are running to serve on the school board's District 1 seat.
Cocke County's early voting location is open from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on weekdays and from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Saturdays up until the week of July 22. Then, they will be open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays and 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on July 27.
Its only early voting location is at 157 Western Plaza Drive in Newport.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Cumberland County's early voting location is open from 8 a.m. through 5 p.m. on weekdays, and open from 8 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays.
It is at the County Election Commission's office, located at 83 Northside Lane in Crossville.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Fentress County's early voting location is open from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. on weekdays, and open from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays, according to the Secretary of State's website. It is located at the election commission's office at 111 North Norris Street in Jamestown.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Grainger County's early voting location is open from 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. on weekdays except Wednesday. On Wednesdays and Saturdays, it's open from 8:30 a.m. through 12 p.m. It is located at the election office located at 8095 Rutledge Pike, in Rutledge.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Greene County's early voting location is open from 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, it is open from 8:30 a.m. through 5:30 p.m. On Saturdays, it will be open from 8 a.m. through 12 p.m.
It is located at the election commission's office at 311 CCU Boulevard, Suite 1, in Greeneville.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Hamblen County's early voting will be located at the Hamblen County Courthouse at 511 West 2nd North Street in Morristown. Anyone who wants more information can call the election commission's office at 423-586-7169.
Early voting locations are open from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. on weekdays and will be open from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays. Jefferson County has three early voting locations, listed below.
- Jefferson County Election Commission Main Office: 760 Justice Center Drive, Suite B in Dandridge
- New Market City Hall: 1024 Volunteer Street in New Market
- White Pine Elementary School: 1360 Roy Messer Highway in White Pine
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Loudon County has three early voting locations, but the Community Church at Tellico Village is only open from July 17 - July 19, from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m. each day. The other two are open from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m. on weekdays, and from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays except for July 27. That day, they will open at 10 a.m.
The locations are listed below.
- Loudon County Office Building: 100 River Road, Loudon
- Roane State Community College: 100 West Broadway, Lenoir City
- Community Church at Tellico Village
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
McMinn County will host two early voting locations, at the McMinn County Courthouse at 6 East Madison Avenue in Athens and at Athens Regional Park from July 22 through July 26. The courthouse will be open from 9 a.m. through 5:30 p.m. on weekdays, and from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays.
The Athens Regional Park location will be open from 9:30 a.m. through 5 p.m.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Monroe County will have four early voting locations, each with different schedules and times they will be open. Those locations and the times they will be open are available below.
- County Election Commission (401 Main Street, Madisonville): Open July 12 through July 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturdays.
- Sweetwater City Hall Basement (203 Monroe Street, Sweetwater): Open July 12 through July 17, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays except Thursday. It will also be open from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturdays.
- Vonore Community Center (611 Church Street, Vonore): Open July 18, July 19 and July 22 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Tellico Community Center (132 Bank Street, Tellico Plains): Open July 23 through July 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Roane County will have four early locations, each with similar schedules and times they will be open. Those locations and the times they will be open are available below.
- Harriman Community Center (631 Clinch Street, Harriman): Open July 12 through July 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.
- Kingston Community Center (201 Patton Ferry Road, Kingston): Open July 12 through July 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.
- Rockwood Community Center (710 North Chamberlain Avenue, Rockwood): Open July 12 through July 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.
- Milestone Church (100 Gum Hollow Road, Oak Ridge): Open July 12 through July 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
The Morgan County Election Commission will be opened for early voting, located in the Morgan County Courthouse. Its address is 415 North Kingston Street, in Wartburg. It will be open from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. most weekdays, and from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m. on Saturdays. However, it will stay open a little longer on July 25 and July 26, welcoming voters from 9 a.m. through 6 p.m.
A sample ballot for the election is available online.
Four independent candidates are running to serve as the county's assessor of property, and three independent candidates are running to serve on the school board's District 2 seat. Two candidates are running for the school board's District 6 seat.
Scott County has two early voting locations, the Scott County Office Building located at 2845 Baker Highway in Huntsville and the Oneida Municipal Building located at 121 Municipal Drive in Oneida.
On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, the locations are open from 10 a.m. through 2 p.m. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, they will be open from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m. On Saturdays, they will be open from 9 a.m. through 12 p.m.
A sample ballot for the election is available below.
Sevier County will have two locations where people can vote early. Both are open from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturdays. However, the Seymour Public Library will only be open from July 15 through July 20. The locations are listed below.
- Election Commission Office: 1145 Dolly Parton Parkway, Sevierville
- Seymour Public Library: 137 West Macon Lane, Seymour
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.
Four independent candidates are running to serve in the Sevier County Commission's District 9, Seat B.
Union County will host early voting at its Paulette Community Center, located at 105 Beech Drive in Maynardville. It will be open Mondays through Saturdays, 9 a.m. through 12 p.m.
A sample ballot for the election is also available online.