INDIANAPOLIS — It's less than two weeks to Election Day and officials are preparing for a record turnout.
A record number of people are voting early, hoping to avoid even longer lines on Nov. 3.
Outside the City-County Building, the line of voters was shorter than usual on Tuesday.. Instead of two hours, they waited about 45 minutes to cast their ballots.
"100 percent man, 100 percent, worth it," said one voter after he slid his paper ballot into the ballot box.
The number of voters beating the Election Day rush is up more than 40 percent from four years ago, the last presidential election.
"It's a relief, it really is," Brittiny Clinton said after casting her ballot. "I took off from work. This is the only thing I have planned for today."
Predicting a record Election Day turnout, local election officials say they will have more than 180 polling sites staffed with plenty of workers. Unlike other elections, they say more than enough people are volunteering to work the polls.
But many early voters believe lines will be even longer on Election Day.
"We are going to have very long lines, which is why I came early," Jennifer Dunlap said.
Tiffany Young agreed.
"It is going to be a complete overload on the third of November with people coming out to vote," Young said.
Record numbers of people are also getting absentee ballots. The application deadline is Thursday.
"If you wait to vote absentee by mail, you are running out of time," said Russell Hollis, deputy director for the Marion County Clerk's Office.
Hollis recommends voters apply online. It's quicker than the mail.
Two weeks before Election Day, almost 54,000 absentee voters had already returned their ballots. That is more than two and a half times the number of mail in ballots cast in 2016.
All the ballots cast by voters in person or through the mail have to be counted starting on Election Day.
"Realistically, it will take a few days to count all the absentee ballots," Hollis said. "You may see changes in election results from Tuesday night on Election Day to maybe Thursday or Friday."