Not much early voting so far in hospital special election

No lines and empty ballot booths indicate a low voter turnout for the Henry County special election so far. The election, which is to take place in person on March 2, will decide whether the Henry County Health Center will approve the lease agreement with Great River Health.

'As of right now, we've only had 123 ballots, both mail-in and in-person, which is very low,” Deputy Auditor Andrea Cook said. 'I don't think the people know about the election, because when they come into the courthouse and see the voting center, they always ask what it's about.”

Mt. Pleasant City Council member Bob Griffith agreed that low voter turnout might be due to lack of public knowledge.

'I haven't seen much PR for the special election, other than a couple of signs,” Griffith said. 'Whether it's not knowing about the election or the cold weather, either way, no one is really showing up.”

Shelley Doak, the HCHC Public Information Director is not worried too much about the low voter turnout.

'We are seeing overwhelming support from voters across Henry County for the lease agreement,” she said. 'People have been volunteering and making calls ahead of the election. Special elections are known to have relatively low turnouts when compared to general and primary elections, though we encourage residents to get out and support HCHC and cast their vote yes to secure its future. For voters wanting to learn more and get accurate information about the lease agreement, they can go to VoteYesHCHC.org.”