(Photo by Shelley Hanson) New Martinsville residents Bill and Theresa Starkey, at left, and Bill Aberegg also of New Martinsville wait in line to cast their ballots on the first day of Early Voting at the Wetzel County Courthouse on Oct. 23.

NEW MARTINSVILLE – The Wetzel County Courthouse was busy on its first day of Early Voting on Oct. 23 with more than 195 people exercising their right to vote in the Nov. 5 General Election.

Wetzel County Clerk Jessica Davis said when she arrived at the courthouse at 8:30 a.m. there were already three voters waiting for the doors of the courthouse to open at 9 a.m.

“This is busier than the primary and a little busier than the last presidential election,” Davis said.

Bill and Theresa Starkey of New Martinsville decided to vote early for the first time. Both said they were going to have busy schedules in the days leading up to the election and they wanted to get their voting out of the way.

The couple said they had been waiting in line for about an hour to vote. A line of about 15 people were behind the Starkeys waiting to cast their ballots.

Davis said there were three voting machines available for use in the voting room. To keep things running smoothly election workers were trying to keep a voter “on deck” during the process. She noted having to check everyone’s ID also adds to the wait time.

“It’s a well-oiled machine. … We’re going as quickly as we can,” she said.

Early voting is still available Wednesday, Oct. 30, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Thursday, Oct. 31, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Friday, Nov. 1, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 2, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the courthouse.

Ten days of Early Voting was made available across all of West Virginia’s 55 counties. Voters are required to provide ID to vote. On Election Day, Nov. 5, the polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.