Primary Election Day for Kentuckians is Tuesday, May 16, but voters may cast early ballots on three days this week without any special qualifying reason to do so.
Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Christian County Senior Center and the James E. Bruce Convention Center.
Where to vote
On Election Day, 16 polling locations will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Voters, regardless of where they reside, may chose any of the following locations on Tuesday, May 16:
- James E. Bruce Convention Center, 303 Conference Center Drive
- Christian County Courthouse, 511 S. Main St.
- Christian County Senior Citizens Center, 1402 W. Seventh St.
- Oak Grove Community Center, 1705 Thompsonville Lane
- Indian Hills Elementary School, 313 Blane Drive
- New Barren Springs Church, 5012 Dogwood-Kelly Road
- New Palestine Baptist Church, 9997 Dawson Springs Road
- Friendship House, 2310 Faulkner Drive
- Sinking Fork Baptist Church, 5800 Princeton Road
- Pembroke Baptist Church, 144 S. Main St.
- Crofton City Hall, 101 E. Mill St.
- South Christian Elementary School, 12340 Herndon-Oak Grove Road
- Boys and Girls Club of Hopkinsville-Christian County, 1600 Walnut St.
- Concord Baptist Church, 1945 Concord Church Road
- Cedar Grove Baptist Church, 1106 E. Second St.
- Hopkinsville Middle School, 434 Koffman Drive
How to return absentee ballot
Voters who requested and received an absentee ballot must return those by mail or in-person at Christian County Clerk Melinda Humprhies’ offices inside the old courthouse on South Main Street. Drop-off boxes for absentee ballots are located inside the front and back entrances of the courthouse. The ballots must be received by 6 p.m. on Primary Election Day.
What’s on the ballot
There are contested statewide races for Republican and Democratic voters to decide on the primary ballot — although the GOP contest for Kentucky governor has garnered by far the greatest attention in this election. The frontrunners include Attorney General Daniel Cameron, former United Nations Ambassador Kelly Craft, Commissioner of Agriculture Ryan Quarles, Somerset Mayor Alan Keck and State Auditor Mike Harmon.
The winner will likely face Democratic incumbent Andy Beshear in the November general election. Beshear is seeking his second term and faces two primary candidates, Peppy Martin and Geoff Young, who’ve had minimal exposure in the race.
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Here is the ballot that Christian County voters will see when they go to the polls.
In addition to the races for governor, there are Republican and Democratic primaries for Commissioner of Agriculture, and Republican primaries for Secretary of State, Auditor of Public Accounts and State Treasurer.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
