Election official’s goal: Quick voting and smiling faces

CEDAR RAPIDS — As counterintuitive as it might sound, voting should be a refuge from the political campaign.

'The polls should be your safe haven from the ads and anyone trying to sway you' because electioneering — political campaigning — is forbidden at polling places, according to Linn County Deputy Commissioner of Elections Tim Box.

'Talk about the weather or the Cubs. Anything but politics,' he advises voters who will be casting their ballots on Election Day.

Read more: Iowa's long, winding road to election day

Today is the last day to vote early and avoid lines that local election officials expect Tuesday.

In Linn County, you can vote today at the Auditor's Office, 935 Second St. SW, Cedar Rapids, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

In Johnson County, early voting is available from 7:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Auditor's Office, 913 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City.

Tuesday, polling places in Iowa are open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Box, who has been with the Linn County Auditor's Office for 17 years and has been the deputy commissioner since 2008, expects turnout to be heavy on Election Day because early voting is running behind compared to other recent presidential elections. More than 35,000 people have voted in Linn County. That's 23 percent of the 154,406 registered voters.

Box is anticipating turnout to be about 118,000 or 76 percent, which is about the same as the 2012 presidential election.

In Johnson County, 33,184, 29 percent, of the 111,253 registered voters had cast a ballot as of Friday.

Election officials expect lines at many polling places Tuesday, so Box recommends voting early rather than waiting until the end of the day.

'Don't wait until the end of the day, especially if you aren't registered to vote,' he said. Iowa allows voters to register at the polls on Election Day if they can prove who they are and where they live.

While he expects lines at polling places Tuesday, Box said it's rare to see long lines — 'The kind of lines you see on TV in other states' — because of Iowa's 40 days of early voting.

His Election Day goal is 'no lines and smiling faces.'

And even if voters are not interested in supporting any of the candidates, Box said there are still reasons to vote.

'Even if they don't want to vote for any of the candidates on the ballot, there are two very important local measures on the ballot,' he said, referring to a question of reducing the size of the board of supervisors from five members to three and another on a tax increase to support county natural resources initiatives. 'If nothing else, come in and vote on those.'