With more than four months until the primary election, time is of the essence for local voters.

This year will be the first time the State of Alabama’s primary has been held in March, three months ahead of its traditional June cycle.

With an electoral slate that includes two county commission seats, the county circuit clerk and probate judge and the President of the United States, Marengo County Registrar Chairwoman Carolyn Thomas is expecting a large turnout.

“Presidential election cycles, the turnout is always its highest,” she said. “With the local elections, we’re expecting a big turnout.”

With some downtime between now and the election cycle, Thomas said it was a good time for county voters to update their information before they head to the polls.

“Girls get married and change their names, people move…and the last thing they think about is updating their voter information,” she said, “until they show up at the polls and it’s wrong.”

Those needing to update their information are asked to contact the Registrar’s Office at 295-2249 or stop by their office in the basement of the Marengo County Courthouse.

The state recently reappointed Registrars in all 67 counties. Marengo was one of the few that saw no turnover from its three-person board.

Barry Hunt, June Vice and Thomas all retained their positions.