Ada County has hosted a mobile voting unit since 2016.
The idea came from the need to have a backup polling place, if there was an emergency on election day. Now, it’s also used as a mobile polling place leading up to the election.
Ada County Clerk Phil McGrane spearheaded the project. He says his passion for competitive barbequing in part inspired the set-up: the trailer and tent combination used on the mobile voting rig mirrors those used in Kansas City barbeque culture.
“The first thing that we do is we actually map every registered voter in Ada County and then we use a heat map to determine their proximity to an early voting location,” McGrane said.
There are three permanent early voting sites in Ada County: Boise City Hall, Meridian City Hall and the County Elections office.
Based on their mapping, McGrane and his team decides where in Ada County most needs access to early voting.
Friday is the last day to catch the mobile voting unit, which will be parked at Eagle City Hall from 10 to 5:30 pm.
The state of Idaho allows residents to cast their ballots early across the state. You can check your county website for voting locations.
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