Today, Ohioans who have not already voted will head to the polls for this year’s general election. According to the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, as of Oct. 27 there had been 61,308 absentee ballots returned and 98,382 early in-person ballots cast. Nearly 160,000 people had already weighed in on the candidates and issues.

But at about this time last year there were 8,159,946 registered voters in the Buckeye State, and 71.71% of them turned out to vote. Admittedly, that one was a bit more of a headline-grabber — but it was certainly no more important than the decisions that will be made this time around. In fact, in terms of having an immediate effect on our daily lives, this one could be more important.

Generally, “off-year” elections in Ohio tend to result in voter turnout under 50%; sometimes dipping as low as approximately 27%. That is a shame. Imagine having to live with the decisions about who will represent your interests on city council, or whether an important levy will be renewed based on the opinions of less than one-third of those registered to vote.

In the Mahoning Valley, turnout could be historically low.

About a month ago, Tom McCabe, director of the Mahoning County Board of Elections, projected a 22% turnout. Stephanie Penrose, director of the Trumbull County Board of Elections, expected the same turnout before early voting began.

Last week, McCabe and Penrose both downgraded their expectations. McCabe told politics reporter David Skolnick that he now expects about 20% of registered voters in Mahoning County to cast ballots.

“It’s a shame,” McCabe said. “These are important elections, particularly with property taxes being such an important issue. People aren’t participating. It’s beyond me. We’re going backwards.”

Penrose’s outlook is even more bleak for Trumbull County, where she now expects no more than 17% of registered voters to actually perform their civic duty. She said the figure could be even lower.

“I’m not feeling that confident about it,” Penrose said said. “I hope I’m wrong, and the turnout blows me out of the water. But unfortunately I don’t think that’s going to happen. There’s very little interest with this election. There doesn’t seem like there’s much that will bring people out.”

Even before the election officials grew even more pessimistic, this general election was projected to have the worst turnout locally in 30 years.

Don’t count on others who share your perspective flocking to the polling places to do the work for you. If there is a voice you want to make sure is heard, you’re going to have to cast your ballot yourself.

Find your polling places in the tri-county area by using these links:

MAHONING COUNTY

https://vote.mahoningcountyoh.gov/Facilities

TRUMBULL COUNTY

https://boe.co.trumbull.oh.gov/pdfs/eligible_polling_places_trumbull.pdf

COLUMBIANA COUNTY

https://lookup.boe.ohio.gov/vtrapp/columbiana/precandpoll.aspx

Then, be sure you have the proper ID with you and head to your polling place between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.

There is plenty at stake in this one. Don’t leave the decisions to someone else. Vote.