Ohio Secretary of State, Frank LaRose has announced on Tuesday that requests for early in-person and absentee ballots have increased by 2.6% over the same point in the 2018 Ohio gubernatorial election.

Requests for ballots total 1,243,505 with 265,062 Ohioans voting early in person and 978,443 requesting an absentee ballot by mail. Among those who requested an absentee ballot, 56.5% have already returned their ballots, a 53.9% increase from 2018's election.

The Mahoning Valley is no exception to the increases in early voting throughout Ohio. Here are the early voting numbers for Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana Counties and how they compared with 2018's numbers:

COLUMBIANA COUNTY:

- Total ballots requested: 7,708 (1,112 more than 2018)

- Ballots cast early in person: 1,505 (749 more than 2018)

- Ballots returned and submitted for counting: 5,583 (745 more than 2018)

MAHONING COUNTY:

- Total ballots requested: 26,937 (1,734 more than 2018)

- Ballots cast early in person: 4,660 (1,787 more than 2018)

-  Ballots returned and submitted for counting: 18,652 (3,559 more than 2018)

TRUMBULL COUNTY:

- Total ballots requested: 22,862 (4,680 more than last year)

- Ballots cast early in person: 5,716 (2,279 more than last year)

- Ballots returned and submitted for counting: 15,154 (3,743 more than last year)

Voters who choose to vote by mail must have their absentee ballot postmarked by no later than Monday, November 7. If you return your ballot in person, you must do so at your county Board of Elections no later than 7:30 p.m. on Election Day.

Ohio law does not allow for absentee ballots to be returned to a polling location on Election Day.