The public has spoken!

The Readers’ Choice nomination period is over and the Times News has received over 69,000 nominations across 200-plus categories.

“We’re almost 12,000 nominations more than last year,” added Jen Rowden, marketing director. “There were a record number of nominations.”

All nominations made by the contest participants have been counted and validated. The top 5 nominees in each category have been finalized.

The Times News team has been reaching out to as many top-5 finalists as possible.

The voting period begins Saturday and runs through Aug. 30.

There are two ways to cast a vote. A print ballot will be available in Saturday’s edition of the Times News, while the online ballot will be live at 12:01 a.m. Saturday.

Visit the Times News Readers’ Choice page for more information. Create posts on it or tag it regarding the competition. It is encouraged to use the #TnReadersChoce2021 hashtag on any social media platform.

There will be recognition of the winners at the culmination of the event in October.