VIDALIA — Voters are already lined up to vote in next Tuesday’s presidential election.

But these folks aren’t camping to be first in line like concert goers-to-be outside a stadium — they’re early voting.

And Concordia Parish Registrar of Voters Golda Ensminger said the flow of traffic through her office has been steady, sometimes with lines with as many as 15 people waiting to vote.

“We’re having a really good turnout for early voting,” she said.

The lines might have been longer, but the registrar’s office was given more machines than in previous elections, Ensminger said.

For Ferriday college student Cherrelle Williams, who has voted early in past elections, voting in person ahead of time is preferable to sending in a mail-in ballot.

“I think it’s convenient,” she said.

But for Vidalia resident Elnora Greene, who moved into the parish from Natchez less than a year ago, this will be the first opportunity to vote early.

“I have some medical problems, and I was just afraid I would miss this special day,” Greene said.

Early voting has been allowed in Louisiana since January 2007, and has grown in popularity with each major election.

Conventional wisdom says that early voting is an indicator of what the turnout on Election Day will be and how the election will ultimately turn out. Votes from early voters won’t be counted until the polls close next Tuesday.

But has this election seen an increase in early voters?

The answer, Ensminger said, is a resounding “maybe.”

Approximately 1,150 voters cast early ballots in the Oct. 2007 gubernatorial primary — a ballot on which the high-interest sheriff’s race was included.

As of 1 p.m. Monday, 1,013 early votes were cast in the current election. Of those, 103 were traditional mail-in absentee ballots and 910 were walk-in voters.

A total of 331 mail-in ballots were sent to voters, and Friday was the busiest day of early voting with 223 ballots cast.

It is possible that the number of early voters will surpass that of October 2007 by the close of early voting tonight, Ensminger said.

Ensminger said the office has also seen a boost in registered voters, but that it wasn’t significantly more than an average gubernatorial election.

And those new registrations and early voters cut across all demographic groups.

“It’s old folks, young folks, middle-aged folks — they’re just concerned about this election and want to get it behind them,” Ensminger said.

Nationally, voter turnout was at 60.7 percent during the 2004 elections. In Concordia Parish, it was 66.3 percent, and Ensminger said she believes that the voter turnout in the parish will again be between 65 and 70 percent.

Today is the final day of early voting. To vote in person, go to the registrar’s office between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Mail-in absentee ballots other than military or overseas ballots are due to the registrar by Nov. 3.