Rapid City, S.D. (KELO) — It’s Election Day in Rapid City, where voters are selecting a new mayor.
Polling places have been open to the public since 7 a.m. Tuesday and will stay open until 7 p.m. tonight.
Once you arrive at your polling place the process is quick.
“It took me about ten seconds to fill out that ballot, it took me about 20 minutes to drive across town,” Rapid City Voter John Dorsey said.
And so far, turnout appears to be better than the last mayoral election, when the number of voters fell below ten thousand for the first time in a decade.
“And it is really important that people get out to vote today. And I’m very pleased with today’s turnout so far. It’s just been consistent, we haven’t had any lulls,” Precinct 3-3 Superintendent PJ Haar said.
Whoever wins this year’s mayoral election is going to have some big shoes to fill as they’re going to be replacing the 58th Mayor, Steve Allender who’s served since 2015.
“This vote, when we pick people to lead us, is very important. And I think you’ll see a good showing,” Dorsey said.
For those who couldn’t make it out to the polls today, there were plenty of other options.
“Which you can go to the courthouse and vote, or you can send in the paperwork to ask that your ballot be sent to you. So there are ways of encouraging everybody, options to get out and vote,” Haar said.
With five different candidates running this year, all it will take is one vote to make a difference.