The issue of early voting in the August 4 primaries became a full-blown controversy this week, after Johnson Countians learned of plans to close eight advance in-person polling locations that had been available for the last big federal election cycle in 2024.

First came a letter of objection from Commission Chair Mike Kelly, followed by an organized protest outside the county election headquarters on Tuesday along with an online petition, followed by another letter of concern, this one from the American Civil Liberties Union.

Most of the concerns had to do with removing advance voting places in neighborhoods with higher proportion of low-income and elderly people and voters of color, where people might have trouble getting transportation to polling places that are farther away.

Some also worried that the change would cause a loss of trust in election procedures among people who viewed the closures as an effort to suppress certain votes.

Here’s a rundown on what’s going on along with some facts about the election.

What voting will this affect?

• The changes only affect advance in-person voting, which is one of three ways people can vote in Kansas.
• The other two ways — voting by mail and voting on Election Day itself — are not impacted.
• Advance voting polling stations are set up so that any registered voter can cast a ballot there. This differs from the Election Day polling places, which cover specific precincts. (Voters must go to their assigned precinct on Election Day.)
• Though early in-person voting sites are being cut, the county is adding eight secure drop box locations for mail-in ballots.
• People can request a mail-in ballot from the election office, which can be mailed or dropped in a secure drop box before the election.
• People who return mail-in ballots are being encouraged to use the drop boxes because there’s no guarantee the U.S. Postal Service will get the ballots to the election office by the end of voting on Election Day.
• In previous elections there was a three-day grace period for late ballots by mail, but the Kansas Legislature eliminated that provision for this election, so to be counted, ballots must arrive by Election Day.

What are the advance in-person voting sites this year?

There are 12. Here they are:

• Johnson County Election Office, 2101 E. Kansas City Road, Olathe
• Johnson County Northeast Offices, 6000 Lamar Ave., Mission
• Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center, 8788 Metcalf Ave., Overland Park
• Monticello Library, 22435 W. 66th St., Shawnee
• Lenexa City Center Library, 8778 Penrose Lane, Lenexa
• Shawnee Library, 13811 Johnson Drive, Shawnee
• New Century Fieldhouse, 551 New Century Parkway, near Gardner
• Olathe Indian Creek Library, 16100 W. 135th St., Olathe
• Hilltop Conference Center, 7700 W. 143rd St., Overland Park
• Overland Park Arboretum Longhouse, 9209 W. 179th St., Bucyrus
• De Soto Community Center, 32905 W. 84th St., De Soto
• Spring Hill Civic Center, 401 N. Madison St., Spring Hill.

The De Soto and Spring Hill sites are new. Still, with the eight eliminated sites, the county’s total of early voting locations will drop from 18 to 12 from the last federal election cycle two years ago.

When will advance in-person voting be?

• Advance in-person voting begins on July 18 and runs for a two-week period until noon on Aug. 3, the Monday before the election.
• No voting places are open on Sunday.
• Otherwise, polling in all 12 locations is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• On Monday, Aug. 3, polling will be from 8 a.m. to noon.
• All advance polling places will keep the same hours.

So what advance voting sites will NOT be open?

Eight sites previously open for early voting for even-year federal elections will not be in operation this year. Those include:

• Central Resource Library, 9875 W. 87th St. in Overland Park
• Oak Park Library, 9500 Bluejacket, Overland Park
• Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive
• Tomahawk Ridge Community Center, 11902 Lowell Ave., Overland Park
• Johnson County Community College Midwest Trust Center, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park
• Westwood City Hall, 4700 Rainbow Blvd.
• Olathe Downtown Library, 260 E. Santa Fe St., Olathe
• Johnson County Sunset offices, 11811 Sunset Drive, Olathe

How popular is advance in-person voting in Johnson County?

• Interim Election Commissioner Connie Schmidt said she’s watched advance voting steadily increase in popularity among Johnson County voters since 1996, when there was only one early polling place. This year the number is 12, which will be six less than 2024 (but one more than last year), when there were 18.
• According to county statistics, 209,305 people voted at advance sites in 2024 in the general election. No numbers for primaries that year were available, but turnout is generally higher for partisan elections in even-numbered years.
• The 2024 numbers were an increase from 2022, when 113,817 voters used advance polling places.
• The top two advance voting places by far in 2024 were the Arts and Heritage Center — with 35,657 ballots cast — and Hilltop — with 35,888. Next highest was Monticello Library, with 20,250.

Why was this change controversial?

• The people who objected to the changes — including the ACLU and Chair Kelly — said they were primarily concerned about a loss of access to the polls for people who might find it difficult to travel farther because of lack of money, job pressures or lack of a mode of transportation.
• The ACLU singled out Olathe Downtown Library, Central Resource Library and Oak Park Library as being in “vulnerable” neighborhoods, and some people also pointed out that the loss of advance polling at JCCC could limit options for students. (Though the Aug. 4 primary will occur when the campus is not fully in session.)
• Kelly also mentioned the possibility of longer lines at other sites and a lack of consultation with the county commission.

Why were the changes made?

• Schmidt said she and staff focused on the overall voting situation in the county rather than individual neighborhoods. The previous locations for early voting were more concentrated in the populated northeastern part of the county, she said, while southern and northwestern areas were lacking in options.
• Schmidt said the new plan spreads the advance sites more evenly across the county and creates more continuity by making all sites have the same days and hours of operation.
• She also doubled the number of drop boxes for mail-in ballots and put them at every county library, which she said would make it easy to remember where they are.

Who controls elections in Johnson County?

• The election office is independent in Johnson County. Though the county commission oversees the office’s budget, it does not have the power to set voting procedures.
• According to Kansas law, election officers in the four largest counties, Johnson, Sedgwick, Shawnee and Wyandotte, are appointed by the Secretary of State.
• Secretary of State Scott Schwab appointed Schmidt interim election commissioner after former Election Commissioner Fred Sherman resigned last December. Sherman said at the time he resigned due to a disagreement with Schwab over an undisclosed policy issue, though no details of that were ever revealed.
• This is not Schmidt’s first time overseeing Johnson County elections. She took over in 2019 after the resignation of Ronnie Metsker. She was previously the appointed election commissioner for the county for 10 years, from 1995 to 2004.
• Schmidt also worked for the U.S. Election Assistance Commission and has been a longtime consultant on election issues.