Early Voting 2

Early voting proves popular during general election

Charles MegginsonGovernment, Headlines

Early voting Matt Meyer

There’s plenty of parking available at the Shipyard Shops early voting location on Wilmington’s Riverfront. (Charlie Megginson/Delaware LIVE)

Delawareans appear to like early voting.

One poll worker at the Wilmington Riverfront polling place said there had been lines out the door since voting began Friday, including one celebrity voter: U.S. President Joe Biden, who voted Saturday alongside his granddaughter Natalie.

On Monday, New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer cast his ballot at the same location.

Meyer, who voted early during the primary election as well, said he’s excited to see more people taking advantage of the voting method during the general election.

“I think it’s fantastic,” he said. “I think voting needs to be widely accessible and we should encourage more people to vote.”

New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer Early voting Matt Meyer

Matt Meyer

Meyer said he believes strongly in same-day voter registration and mail-in voting, both of which were ruled unconstitutional by the Delaware Supreme Court earlier this month.

RELATED: Supreme Court strikes down vote-by-mail, same-day registration

“It’s a court decision,” Meyer said. “The court says there needs to be a constitutional amendment and I certainly would do everything to support that constitutional amendment.”

Early voter Dennis Vorheis, who voted by mail in 2020, said his employer offers time off to vote on election day but he decided to vote early anyway.

“The combination of wanting to avoid the lines next Tuesday and being off work today gave me the freedom and the flexibility to vote early,” Vorheis said. “Could I have voted on election day? Yes. Is it more convenient for me to vote early? Yes.”

The 2022 primary election was the first statewide election to allow early voting. The state allowed early voting once before during a special election in March.

House Bill 38, which authorized the method, was signed by the governor in 2019 but did not take effect until Jan. 1, 2022. The bipartisan bill passed 34 to 6 in the House of Representatives and 16 to 5 in the Senate.

Under the new law, voters may cast their ballot at any early voting site in their county at least 10 days prior to primary, general and special elections. Early voting is available up to and including the Sunday before Election Day.

Inside the polling place, voters are able to cast their ballot using regular voting machines.

Early voting stats


As of 12 p.m. Monday, 12,469 voters had taken advantage of early voting, with most of them being from Sussex County.

  • Kent County: 1,862
  • New Castle County: 4,214
  • Sussex County: 6,393

How to vote early


If you are unable to vote on election day, you may vote early, in person, at the following locations. You may go to any early voting location in the county in which you reside.

Hours of operation are listed below the early voting sites.

  • Kent County
    • Frederica Senior Center: 216 Market St, Frederica, DE 19946
    • Houston Fire Company: 143 Broad St, Houston DE 19954
    • Department of Elections: 100 Enterprise Place Suite 5, Dover DE 19904
    • Crossroad Christian Church: 4867 N. Dupont Hwy, Dover DE 19901
  • New Castle County
    • Gunning Bedford Middle School: 801 Cox Neck Rd, New Castle DE 19720
    • Claymont Community Center: 3301 Green St, Claymont DE 19703
    • Department of Elections: 220 Lisa Dr, New Castle DE 19720
    • Hudson State Service Center: 501 Ogletown Rd, Newark DE 19711
    • Shipyard Shops: 912 Justison St, Wilmington DE 19801
  • Sussex County
    • Millville Community Center: 32517 Dukes Drive, Millville DE 19967
    • Lewes Fire Department Station #2: 32198 Janice Rd, Lewes DE 19958
    • Laurel Fire Hall: 205 W. 10th St, Laurel DE 19956
    • Department of Elections Georgetown warehouse: 542 South Bedford St, Georgetown DE 19947
    • Department of Elections Seaford warehouse: 200 Allen St, Seaford DE 19973

General election early voting hours of operation:

  • Friday, Oct. 28: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, Oct. 29: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Sunday, Oct. 30: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Monday, Oct. 31: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Tuesday, Nov. 1: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Nov. 2: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Thursday, Nov. 3: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Friday, Nov. 4: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, Nov. 5: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Sunday, Nov. 6: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

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