Early voting down 32% in Washington County

More than 2,400 people have voted in the first week of the early voting period for the Washington County primary election. Washington County Administrator of Elections Chuck Vest said this trend will lead to an estimated 4,900 early voters by the end of the period. This is a 32% decrease of early voters from the previous primary election in 2022. Vest said the decrease of early voters for the 2026 primary election is likely due to the low number of contested races. The 2026 primary election has only four contested races on the Republican ballot. He said none of the contested races are for major legislative offices with the general sessions judge part one being the most notable. In 2022, the primary election had 13 contested races which included county mayor, sheriff, and numerous others. By the end of the 2022 primary, 13,171 voters participated in the election. The 2022 general election saw a decrease in voter participation by 15%. "More people voted in the May primary because it was basically all Republicans (candidates)," Vest said. "So, whoever won the May primary was going to win the general (election)." He added this is not the case for the 2026 general election in August and he expects the turnout to surpass the 11,140 voter participation in the 2022 general election. "I think we'll see a bigger turnout this August because none of the races will really be decided," he said. He estimates there will be more than 16,000 voters in the August general election. With the contested governor's race also on the ballot, the election could even surpass the voter turnout in the 2018 general election in which 19,000 people voted. Washington County typically sees between 12% and 15% of registered voters participating in primary elections. Vest said participation increases to about 20% for general elections. "There's roughly 92,000 registered voters and about 80,000 that we consider active voters," he said. "If somebody's not voted in the last two federal elections, then they go into inactive status." Vest said voter turnout during early voting and on election day is historically equal, but voting early has become a growing trend. "If anything, more people are choosing to vote early now than they are absentee," he said. "Early voting is really more convenient for individual voters." Registered voters in Washington County can vote at one of the three available precincts within the county during the early voting period. Precincts are located at Freedom Hall, old Jonesborough Middle School and Johnson City Fire Station #8. Each precinct is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. until noon through Saturday, April 30.