New Macon County early voting facility ready for election season

DECATUR, Ill. (WCIA) — The race for the White House is in full swing. But in Macon County, the race to complete the new early voting center is over.

The new voting center will be ready just in time for the start of early voting in Macon County September 26th. On Thursday, the clerk’s office held an open house for voters to check out the new facility.

Board member Debra Kraft says work on the new building started a year ago.

“I was very disappointed that we didn’t have it ready for the primary,” Kraft said. “However, I’m very ecstatic that I mean, this is a big election, the general election year.”

It’s right down the street from where the old early voting center was housed the county office building in Decatur. Voters like Kathleen Beube are impressed with the upgrades.

“I was very excited that they were enlarging their space because voting in a smaller office across the street has been a little congested at times,” she said.

“It was just one room and I believe Mr. Tanner said they were lucky if we could get 1000 people through in a day,” Kraft said.

Kraft says the new space is nearly four times bigger than the old one and will be able to allow 2,000 people to pass through daily. It also has a parking lot right next to the building.

“The parking is perfect,” Beube said. “We used to have a parking problem across the street and so therefore we have everything we need now.”

Kraft says the parking will better serve people in wheelchairs, and the inside of the center allows for more privacy for voters, thanks to the new setup.

“I encourage everyone to come out and see this beautiful facility,” Kraft said.

It cost the county $900,000 dollars to build the new center.

The county has several dates set for early voting. The first two are Sept. 26 and 27 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

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