Polling places in Champaign County opened at 6 a.m. Tuesday, and for many of them, most of the setup took place only an hour earlier when election judges arrived at 5 a.m.

Seven of the 117 polling places in the county are on campus. The Illini Union’s Pine Lounge, the University YMCA’s Latzer Hall and Snyder Hall, ISR, LAR PAR, and Daniels Graduate Hall will all have voting booths and ballots available for 13 hours of voting on Tuesday.

Carol Nunn, house director and receptionist of the University YMCA, said she expects the voting process to run smoothly. The YMCA just had to cancel events in Latzer Hall and provide a building key to the election judges.

Responsibility for making sure the election process is conducted fairly falls mainly on the shoulders of the election judges, said Lynn Foster, county clerk of Vermillion County, which includes Danville and other areas to the east of campus.

“The election judges’ primary responsibility is to protect the rights of voters so that everyone who is entitled to vote has the opportunity to do so,” Foster said.

This duty includes opening and closing the polls, giving voting instructions, helping disabled voters and tallying votes after the polls close, according to the Champaign County Clerk’s Web site.

At least five judges will staff each polling place, so a minimum of 585 people will work as election judges in Champaign County, said Rhonda Wrona, chief deputy county clerk.

The judges will bring the ballots with them Tuesday morning when they open the polls. The number of ballots available at each polling place is based on the number of voters who participated in the previous election, Wrona said.

“We increase it for presidential elections because we always think the turnout will be huge,” she said.

Judges are encouraged to participate in a training course prior to election day. Those who have completed the course will receive $120 for the day’s work, while those who have not taken the course will receive $75, according to the Champaign County Clerk’s Web site.

Lines for early voting in Champaign County and elsewhere have been long, and Foster expects the polls to be busy on the official election day as well. However, she said polls are usually quieter around 9 or 10 a.m. and between 1 and 3 p.m.

All polling places in the county close at 7 p.m. Tuesday.