Early voting started at 8 a.m. Tuesday and five were already in line at the Lawrence County Board of Elections office to cast their ballots.

From now until General Election day on Nov. 3 the courthouse office will offer extended hours for voting.

For the next three weeks those voting absentee can come in between 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

The week of the Oct. 26, hours will then be 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday 1 to 5 p.m.

Voters can either come in person to the courthouse or mail in their absentee ballots.

With three statewide issues on the ballot, Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted is providing a new website — MyOhioVote.com — with educational videos, explanations and pro and con arguments to help voters determine their positions.

County election officials mail out absentee ballots upon receipt of a voter application. So far in Lawrence County 1,450 applications have been mailed out.

“Early voting and absentee voting make it easy as possible for properly registered voters to participate in the democratic process,” Mark McCown, election board member, said.

For those who vote early in the office, any problems with registration can be addressed then.

“Sometimes people will put the last four digits of their spouse’s Social Security number on the envelope and that ends up rejected,” McCown said. “For those that do apply and do it through the mail, on our website there is a link and they can track the ballot through the process.”

Also on the website every voter can find a copy of what their actual ballot will look like.