PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - Heading into the year, Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes planned to open 503 polling locations for both the primary and general elections.

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, he revised that number down to 100 because it's difficult to find poll workers willing to put their health at risk.

But even that new goal is proving hard to reach as just 27 polling locations have committed to opening its doors for the fast-approaching Aug. 4 primary.

"We're going to be putting voters in danger. We're going to be putting our poll workers in danger and that is not right," Fontes said Monday.

The Democratic County official has led the charge for switching to a mail-in election this year to reduce the threat of contracting and spreading COVID-19. President Donald Trump has thrown cold water on the idea and Gov. Doug Ducey has said he doesn't want to make mail-in voting mandatory.

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While mail-in ballots are a staple of voting in Arizona, Fontes estimates more than 650,000 voters in Maricopa County will not get an early ballot.

"This is a great opportunity for Gov. Ducey to step up and show some leadership, go beyond politics and do what the CDC suggests," he said.

Fontes was referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that recommends encouraging, "mail-in methods of voting if allowed in the jurisdiction."

A new AP-NORC poll released Monday shows growing support nationally for mail-in election amid the outbreak of COVID-19. Thirty-nine percent of voters now support exclusively holding the vote by mail elections, up 20 points from a similar survey conducted in 2018. Forty percent of those asked said they oppose the idea. At least three dozens poll workers and voters tested positive for coronavirus following its primary earlier this month, according to published reports.

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However, the governor's top medical expert, Dr. Cara Christ, wouldn't say if mailing in ballots is safer than in-person voting come the general election.

"Not right now. It's just so far away. It's hard to tell what it's going to look like in November," she said.