While the Emergency Operations Center, The Way and the Lexie Bush Convention Center are typical, and popular, locations to vote in Trigg County — polling points “in the holler” have, and will always have, their place.
Tuesday’s general election proved such, as East Golden Pond Fire Department, Trigg-Lyon Fire Department and South Road Fire Department all experienced marked surges from their 2023 primary turnouts.
Without paid volunteers under the direction of County Clerk Carmen Finley, these options aren’t possible.
A retired educator for Christian County Public Schools, local resident Kandy Garrett said she’s “loved everything about” being a poll worker these last three years.
Helping out at East Golden Pond, she termed the task an “important civic duty” along with voting, and by noon, more than 340 had cast ballots there.
Very consistent, she later remembered. She’d been that busy.
Garrett also noted it was thrilling to see people engaged politically, while working to express their right to vote.
As of 1:05 PM, more than 200 people had been by Trigg-Lyon, having their say about the state’s next leaders.
That’s a massive increase from this past May, where less than 130 people had chimed in for their November representatives.
A poll worker for Trigg County since 1998, Linda Guerrant said she hasn’t once missed an election for the community — and does her work in the memory of her late husband, a 28-year military man.
She found Tuesday’s turnout, blooming well into the afternoon, gratifying.
Meanwhile, cell phone services and correct GPS coordinates are both uncommon in the southern reaches of the county, but poll workers Linda Jones, Harriet Clark, and Marsha & Jan Petro stood vigil on the South Road.
This polling center now exists as a key hub for Linton and Roaring Springs residents, as well as those living near the state line — and provides a comfortable stop so citizens don’t have to drive all the way into town.
As of 1:35 PM, more than 160 people had punched their ticket here — and that’s worth noting, since it’s a 22-minute drive between Trigg-Lyon and the South Road fire departments, and at least 10 minutes one way to another voting center.
Jan added this has taken getting used to for some folks.
Current Secretary of State Michael Adams noted the Commonwealth’s voter turnout could eclipse 45%, while Trigg County officials indicate that 30% — or a little higher — may be the final tally.
While that’s a higher expectation, everyone agrees more is needed in future elections.
