STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
The Blaine County Elections Office has set out a shiny new ballot box behind the old Blaine County Courthouse in the alley way.
The box was set up to give people an additional spot to drop off ballots in a year when mail-in and absentee ballots are expected to be heavy. It is the only one in the valley.
Idaho has already set a state record this year registering more than a million voters. Nearly 150,000 of those have requested absentee ballots.
Twenty-two million Americans have already voted in what might be a record-setting election.
The Election Office has seen a steady stream of people voting early and dropping their ballots off since voting began earlier this week. But there have not been the long 8-, 9-, 10-hour waits some parts of the United States have seen.
Early voting runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through Oct. 30. Those who requested an absentee ballot but have decided to vote in person during early voting may take their absentee ballot to the Elections Office, where the absentee ballot will be destroyed allowing them to vote in person.