- Georgia experiences record-breaking early voter turnout with over 1.8 million participants.
- Volunteers from organizing for Grady County actively encourage voter participation in Cairo.
- Watch the story to see how one small organization is pushing to make a big difference in the community.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
More than 1 point 8 million.
That's how many people have already participated in Georgia's early voting.
Election officials say that number will only go up, making this a historic election for the Peach State.
WTXL reporter AJ Douglas was in the Cairo neighborhood where one small voter's education group is making a big difference in this community by getting more people to vote.
"A lot of people are unaware. They don't know the dates. They don't know how important it is,” said volunteer Melissa Hunter, with "Organizing for Grady County".
Since early voting started in Georgia volunteers like Melissa Hunter have been stationary in places like North Broad Street for two hours a day, twice a day.
Hunter said she pushes people to vote in several ways.
"Getting out holding a sign or calling people and reminding them. Just a little motivation behind it,” according to Hunter.
Hunter volunteers for the voter education group "Organizing for Grady County."
Organizers have people with a background in government break down the ballot.
"We go and find people to explain it and put it in more friendly terms so people can understand what they are choosing,” said "Organizing for Grady County" president Cheryl Simmons.
The Georgia Secretary of State website reports that 4,190 ballots have been accepted in Decatur County with their neighbors in the east not too far behind marking 3,862 ballots accepted in Grady County and counting.
Other counties like Thomas County accepted 9,714 and Lowndes County with 18,233 so far.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger gave an update on Georgia's record early voter turnout Wednesday.
"Just under two weeks until the election an astounding 26.8% of all active voters have already participated,” said Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Simmons said the organizations plan to keep giving people a friendly nudge to the polls.
Hunter said she would focus on the crowd most challenging to reach.
"Younger people are not interested in voting. You're young now but eventually, you'll be older. It makes a big difference,” said Hunter.
Early voting ends November 1.
Vote early at 250 N. Broad Street in Cairo, Georgia for Grady County residents.
Decatur County residents can vote at 122 West Water Street.
