In-person voting for this year’s U.S. presidential election began Friday, a milestone that kicks off a six-week race to Election Day after a summer of political turmoil.
Voters lined up to cast ballots in Minnesota, South Dakota and Virginia, the states with the first opportunities for early in-person voting. About a dozen more states will follow suit by mid-October.
At a Minneapolis polling place, Jason Miller arrived well before 8 a.m., when polls opened, and was first in line.
“Why not be the first? It’s fun, isn’t it?” said the 37-year-old house painter.
He said he voted “against madness,” but declined to mention the name of his presidential choice.
“I don’t think I have to. I think it’s pretty obvious. I think it’s very, very clear,” he said.
The start of in-person voting follows a tumultuous summer in American politics that included President Joe Biden dropping out of the race and replacing him with Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee, as well as an assassination attempt on Republican nominee Donald Trump followed by another apparent attack just nine weeks later.
Across the country, local election directors are increasing security to protect their workers and polling places while ensuring that ballots and voting procedures are not tampered with.
Ordinary election officials and workers have been subject to harassment and even death threats since the 2020 presidential election.
Federal authorities are investigating the origin of suspicious packages sent to or received by election officials in recent days in more than 15 states, including Virginia.
“If I could wave a magic wand in this room right now, I would wish for two things: Between now and Nov. 5, I would like to see high turnout and low drama,” Minnesota Secretary of Government Steve Simon said Thursday at a news conference previewing his state’s election-season efforts.
Simon is also president of the National Association of Government Secretaries.
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