PORTSMOUTH — “Vote early and often,” the comically cynical phrase goes.

Many Portsmouth residents, however, are definitely following the first part of that maxim.

According to figures from the R.I. Secretary of State’s Voter Turnout Tracker website, 2,796 Portsmouth residents had already voted in person at Town Hall by early Tuesday afternoon. 

In addition, another 800 mail ballots had been delivered to the R.I. Board of Elections (BOE), with more to arrive. Jacqueline Schulz, Portsmouth’s registrar of voters, said her office had processed 1,342 requests, included emergency voting, by Tuesday morning.

Statewide, there had been a total turnout of 124,750 by Tuesday afternoon — 91,021 early voters and 33,729 mail ballots at the BOE. That represented a turnout of 15.7 percent still a week away from Election Day.

Portsmouth leads Newport County in early voting — including the City of Newport, and Schultz said what’s happening is unprecedented.

“We’ve been averaging 250 to 300 (early votes) a day,” she said. “There was a line when we opened up the first day, waiting for our doors to unlock.”

Schulz said she doesn’t remember another election year that had such a high early voting turnout. “It’s encouraging,” she said. “This is all new and exciting. I’m glad that people are utilizing this opportunity.”

As to why so many voters are choosing to cast ballots early, Schultz could only speculate.

“A lot of people are going to be away. We’ve had a lot of people that have had unexecuted trips. But I’m not sure,” she said.

As it does every election year, the Portsmouth Canvassing Authority (683-3157) is happy to answer any questions residents have about the voting process.

“Some of the questions we get are, ‘Where do I go to vote? Where is my mail ballot? Is it too late? I’m not registered to vote. What can I do? What options do I have?’ Those kinds of things,” Schultz said.

Her office, which conducts in-person early voting inside the Town Council Chambers at Town Hall, has also fielded a few questions regarding voter security

“People are asking, ‘What happens? Because there are Town Council meetings here during the week.’ We lock everything up and literally take everything out of there at the end of the day and bring it back in every morning,” she said.

More information

Early voting ends at 4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 4. There’s also a ballot drop box outside the south entrance to Town Hall, which is available 24/7 until 8 p.m. on Election Day. Voters can track their mail ballot at vote.ri.gov. 

For those voting at the polls from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 5, polling sites can be found at vote.ri.gov.