Although early voting runs through Monday, Johnson County already reports an increase from the last local election cycle in early voting turnout for the 2025 local elections.
As of Nov. 2, 3,758 people cast their ballots early since the polls opened on Oct.15.
City council and school board elections occur every two years, and in the past two cycles, early voting numbers have fluctuated. In 2021, 3,872 people in Johnson County voted early. In 2023, the county saw a decrease with 3,400 people voting early.
Johnson County has one more day of early voting, which will conclude before the election on Nov. 3, allowing constituents to vote despite personal conflicts they may have on Nov. 4.
“We’re doing pretty well. We’re actually doing very well,” Johnson County Auditor Julie Persons said, “City and schools [elections] don’t get as much attention. I wish they did because they’re very important, because these are our neighbors that are making these decisions, so it has a very local impact.”
This year’s election will take place on Nov. 4 and will include elections for Iowa City City Council members and Iowa City School District Board members. There are currently three available city council seats and three open seats for the ICCSD school board.
Johnson County has several polling locations available, including the Johnson County Auditor’s Office, the Coralville Public Library, and North Liberty City Hall. The county has early drive-through voting hosted at the Health and Human Services Building Parking Ramp on S. Dubuque St. in Iowa City.
Several voters coming out of the Johnson County Auditor’s office stated avoiding lines that typically occur on election day was one of the main reasons they voted early. Others cited the approaching holidays and visiting family as reasons for casting an early ballot.
Persons said Johnson County is the only county in the state that offers drive-through or ramp voting. This allows voters to cast their votes in a drive-through format so they can stay in their cars, allowing for more accessibility.
“It’s very helpful, especially for parents with very young children, or people that maybe have mobility issues,” Persons said, “It’s a great opportunity and we’re very fortunate we have a ramp.”
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Informing the public about early voting is something Persons and her team work to do, as local elections often have less funding behind them than state or federal elections, resulting in lower turnout.
“Without all the billions and billions of dollars in funding, a lot of people don’t know that elections are going on,” Persons said, “So we try to get the word out on social media, the county does as well. We’re just trying to inform people that there is an election every November.”
Persons highlighted the work that goes into overseeing voting in Johnson County, citing the prep work and her highly trained team as the reason things are able to run smoothly.
“We’re basically here to make sure everything runs through barriers. So it’s a lot of getting them the resources they need, making sure I’m here to answer the questions,” she said.
Persons, who was previously the mayor of Swisher, Iowa, said the impact of local elections in Iowa City is a “very different scene,” even from a city to county level.
“This has a much wider impact, I love it. I find it unbelievably fascinating,” she said.
Early voting can also go unnoticed, but to poll election official Jean Walshire, it is incredibly important in providing everyone a fair chance to cast a vote.
“Nobody knows what’s gonna happen on the actual day, right? I mean, the weather could be bad, you could have a family member that’s sick, or people travel. Just totally different reasons,” she said.
Wallshire said she has always been interested in the voting process and has enjoyed being able to do so much at the polls now.
“When I retired from my last year, everybody said, ‘Find the thing that you’re always been interested in but you can never do because you were working,’” she said. “And then a couple months later, I saw an ad for this, and I thought that’s my thing.”
Persons said there will always be uncertainty about election day, so voting early can be a good way to ensure your vote gets cast and counted.
“[Early voting] gives people time to work into their schedule, rather than [having to] come on Tuesday,” she said. “We try to make it as accessible as possible.”