Candidates have been zipping and zagging across the Coastal Empire for months – here, there, and everywhere – asking for your vote.

On Tuesday night, Senator Ben Watson (R-1) was at a large barbeque gathering of enthusiastic supporters at the Forest City Gun Club. Chris Middleton, candidate for Superior Court Judge, was at the Chatham-Savannah Citizen Advocacy potluck downtown at Savannah Station – and his opponent, Frank Pennington, was on the other side of Chatham County at The Taco Stache in Pooler for a campaign event.

Senator Ben Watson at a large barbeque gathering of enthusiastic supporters Credit: Kristy Edenfield

In addition to attending events, candidates have been door knocking, canvassing, mailing postcards, phone banking – morning, noon, and night – nary a waking hour to themselves, sacrificing family time, asking for the electorate to “hire” them for some of the most important jobs in our community.

Large glossy mailers have been inserted in every mailbox across Chatham County, and robo calls are ringing on cellular phones.

Despite their best efforts to get people out to vote early, pleas have largely gone unheeded.

The polls have already been open for 17 consecutive days, including weekends – and will be open again today and tomorrow for people who want to get their ballot cast before Election Day on Tuesday, May 21.

As of Wednesday, only 2.8% of Chatham County eligible voters have participated in this election.

Of the 231,019 Chatham County registered voters, only 6,582 have voted early. That number represents 1,222 of the 2,227 absentee ballots issued that have been returned, and 5,360 votes cast at the four voting sites available.

Yesterday, Wednesday, May 15 had the highest numbers with 93 absentee ballots returned, and 829 ballots cast in person.

The VR Annex on Eisenhower has received the most traffic of the four different locations that are open for early voting, with 3,567 votes cast over the past 17 days.

What does this mean? With the incredibly low turnout, only a small fraction of Chatham County citizens will decide these elections.

What is on the ballot?

State Senate and House races, all Chatham County Commission seats, four of the nine School Board seats, District Attorney, judicial races, Sheriff, Coroner, Tax Commissioner. While some of these races are uncontested, others have been heated and are expected to be decided by double digits.

Any election being decided by a differential of less than 0.5% may be recounted.

Any election where there is not an absolute majority (50% plus one) will have a runoff election on Tuesday, June 18. Only elections with three or more candidates would fall into this category and those on the ballot are Coroner (D), County Commission District 8 (D), and Board of Education District 7.

Chatham County Voter Registration Office has made it easy to vote. Friendly poll workers greet you at each of the four sites, and you are in and out within minutes.

In addition to the 12 hours that all of the polls will be open on Election Day, Tuesday, May 21 (7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.), collectively, Chatham County has staffed 552 early voting hours at the four different sites.

These elections represent some of the most consequential local races, and your participation is important.

It is your civic duty to vote.

At this point, the decisions will be made by the candidates who can get their supporters to turnout on Election Day.

Please follow Connect Savannah for all of the latest results on Election Night!

Individuals who have questions about voting, or issues on Election Day, are encouraged to call the Chatham County Voter Registration office at (912) 790-1520.

Where to vote Thursday and Friday:

VR Annex – 1249 Eisenhower Drive – 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Mosquito Control – 65 Billy B Hair Drive – 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Civic Center – 301 West Oglethorpe Avenue – 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Oatland Island Wildlife Center – 711 Sandtown Road – 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Where to vote in Election Day – Tuesday, May 21:

At your normal polling place from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

For locations and directions, check the My Voter Page on the Georgia Secretary of State website linked here.

https://mvp.sos.ga.gov/s/

Where to drop an absentee ballot:

It is likely too late to mail your absentee ballot, but you can drop it off at one of three available drop boxes before 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.

Military personnel have three additional days for the Chatham County Board of Elections to receive their absentee ballot in the mail.