MAHONING COUNTY Reminders of precinct changes

YOUNGSTOWN -- The Mahoning County Board of Elections is sending two letters before the Nov. 6 election reminding voters about new voting precinct boundaries and locations to comply with a state mandate.
The board has eliminated 25 percent of its precincts, reducing the number from 416 to 312.
"We have been working very hard the past two years in complying with new Ohio law, and we are sure that this project will save money and better accommodate voters in the long run," said Thomas P. McCabe, deputy director.
The move saves about $1,000 per precinct for each election, said Michael Sciortino, board director.
"Never before has this board of elections engaged in such an extensive and important reprecincting project," Sciortino said.
The board will send out a mailer to the county's 177,347 registered voters starting today, and a second notice will be sent shortly before the election.
Ballot requests: The mailers will also have a form at the bottom for voters to request absentee ballots if they cannot make it to the polls Nov. 6, Sciortino said. Requests for absentee ballots must be received by the board of elections no later than Nov. 3, he said.
The board plans to put a link on its Web site -- http://www.electionohio.com/mahoning -- to allow viewers to find their precinct and voting location. Trumbull County is the only other county board to have such a link on its Web site, Sciortino said.
"Virtually every voter in the county has been affected by this change, whether it is the size of their precinct increasing, a new voting location and/or a new precinct number," said Mark Munroe, elections board chairman. "We don't want to surprise anyone about the changes."
Voters in Youngstown, Struthers and Poland used the new precincts during the May primary.