Election Commission Discusses Covid-19, Voting

DRESDEN (June 1) — At the monthly meeting of the Weakley County Election Commission on Monday, there were many discussions over the upcoming election.

Administrator Alex Britt told the commission that with Covid-19 being a concern at polling stations, the State of Tennessee is sending protective equipment for workers to wear. In Weakley County, as of right now, it will be mandatory to wear a mask. If a worker wants to wear gloves, gowns, or a face shield, those will be available for them. Each voter will also receive a pen to use, that they will keep, reducing the chances of germs spreading while voting.

It was also mentioned there is currently a lawsuit regarding elections, one which will be heard later this week, that wants the state to provide a no-excuse absentee ballot and remove the in-person voter registration to make it where a person does not have to have voted in person to vote by mail. There is currently no change to how voting in-person or in the mail voting has had any changes.

It was reported that more voters in Weakley County are applying for absentee voting by mail then in past elections. Alex Britt told the commission that as election day comes closer there will be more people using mail-in voting.

Britt is talking with city officials in each city in Weakley County concerning voters casting ballots by mail in municipal elections through the non-resident, property-owner provisions allowed by municipalities. This is to decrease the chances of a person voting twice by mistake. There are currently ordinances being written for each city that will be presented to each elected board for consideration.

In the upcoming municipal elections, there are these seats available: Martin has three alderman positions, Dresden has three at-large aldermen, Sharon has one mayor for a two-year term and two aldermen at-large for four-year terms, Gleason has one mayor and four alderman positions, and Greenfield has one mayor for a two-year term with four aldermen at-large for a four-year term and one alderman for a two-year term.

Greenfield is also working for having a vote for decreasing the number of aldermen for the city from the current eight to six.

Early voting begins July 22. The Satellite Early Voting Station located in Martin at the Mason lodge will open each Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday during early voting at the same hours of operations as in past elections.