By Kensi Freeland
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.— Election Day for the 2020 Presidential Election is happening Tuesday, Nov. 3.
There are many places in Benton and Washington County that are acting as polling centers.
These two counties are important in the statewide outcome of the election since they’re part of the top three most populated counties in Arkansas.
Janine Parry, University of Arkansas Political Science Professor, said this year she expects to see record voter turnouts nationwide.
“These two counties have, for Arkansas and southern standards, a fairly strong voter turnout,” Parry said.
She said this is because they tend to have higher than average levels of education and income, which are the driving factors of voter turnout.
“You can go back all the way to the 1960’s in Washington County and see that is has voted Republican everytime except for 1992 and 1996, when Bill Clinton won by a few percentage points,” Parry said.
Benton County, however, has consistently voted Republican for longer than Washington, including the Clinton years.
“These counties are rapidly growing. They’re undergoing tremendous transformation, particularly in the last twenty years, but they are still composed of rural southern communities,” said Parry.
Parry said these rural southern communities usually tend to vote overwheningly Republican.
She also mentioned how it’s currently a difficult time to be a new or inexperienced voter, but there are many resources that can help people with questions.
“The main thing to know is this is a very local level thing, so look to local level sources and local level news for help. The County Clerk is the best place to figure out where you want to vote,” Parry said.
First time voter, Kennth Smith, said his voting experience was fast and easy.
“You just go up, show your ID, and you get a little slip, then plug it into the ballot machine. It wasn’t too complicated,” Smith said.
Smith encourages all eligible people to use their right to vote.