Early voting begins in Oklahoma County with large turnout

Last updated on October 30, 2024, 2:29 pm | Published: October 30, 2024

OKLAHOMA CITY (Free Press) – Eager Oklahoma County voters formed an eight-block car line and then stood in long parking lines outside the Oklahoma County Election Board on Wednesday.

It was the first day of early voting in Oklahoma with only two early voting locations in Oklahoma County, one at the Board of Elections offices on N. Lincoln Blvd north of the Oklahoma Capitol and one in Edmond.

When we spoke to him around 8:50 a.m., Eric Dixon was about 25 people in line after entering the Oklahoma County Election Board polling station. The site opened at 8:00 am.

He proudly wore his US Navy cap (retired) as he stood patiently in line, occasionally leaning on a cane and then alternately leaning toward the wall for support.

Dixon and several others close to him said they stood in line together around 7:30 a.m., trying to secure a good spot in line before the site opened. Everyone in line was patient but seemed tired as they approached the entrance.

While Edmond has its own early voting site, the rest of the Oklahoma City metro area in Oklahoma County only has a site at the Election Board in Lincoln.

In the far suburbs of Oklahoma City, voters in Canadian, Cleveland and Pottawatomie counties would go to early voting locations there. Nevertheless, Oklahoma City's population represents the majority in Oklahoma County and is many times greater than that of Edmond.

The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the population of Edmond, Oklahoma was 98,103 as of July 1, 2023, compared to Oklahoma City's 702,767.

Early voting continues until Saturday afternoon. Election Day is Tuesday, November 5th, when you can vote at your regular polling station in your precinct. Check out our previous coverage for voting information.

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Founder, publisher and editor of Oklahoma City Free Press. Brett continues to contribute stories and photos to this site as he runs the company.