J’s Place owner Les Lipford, right, and promoter Milton Jones are holding several day parties at the establishment to encourage Kinstonians to vote in the upcoming election. Photo by Junious Smith III / Neuse News

By Junious Smith III

As early voting kicked off Wednesday, a local nightclub wanted to encourage Kinstonians to vote.

J’s Place had its first day party to celebrate those who made their voices heard at the polls. The event, sponsored by Kings Restaurant and The Bankman Jones Show, provides free food and entry for those who come in with an “I Voted” sticker. J’s Place will also provide free rides to the polls for those who need them.

Wednesday was the first of six day parties, as there will be other ones on Oct. 18-19 and Oct. 24-26. Each one will run from noon to 5 p.m.

Les Lipford, owner of J’s Place, said the idea came from Promoter Milton “Bankman” Jones and others, in a way to help raise voting numbers. According to the Lenoir County Board of Elections, only 26.4 percent of registered voters came out to the polls in 2017, an increase of 22.47 percent in 2015.

“We’re trying to bridge the gap in our community,” Lipford said. “The idea was to get everyone together and encourage them to vote. We don’t care who you vote for — we just want the community to make their voices heard.”

Jones said this was his first time voting in an election and wanted to change the narrative.

“We wanted to bring positivity to the community, using our platform to get people out to the polls and realize the importance of voting. The numbers are usually low in non-presidential years and we want to help change that.”

Kinstonians can go to Teachers Memorial Gym or the Lenoir County Board of Elections Office to vote early. Both places will be open until Friday Nov. 1, with the exception of Oct. 20 and 27. Teachers Memorial will operate from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. except for Oct. 31 — from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. — and on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Board of Elections will operate from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.

This is also the last election Kinstonians can vote without needing a form of ID.