Just drove past my polling place which is a high school. I’ve voted for 12 years at this site. Most of the time it was only 4 or 5 people deep. Once I had to spend some time in line in the hallway outside the room the poll was held in.
Today, the line wasn’t just long, it was IN-FUCKING-CREDIBLY LONG!!!
It spilled outside the freaking building, wrapped around the front, down the side and up the back of the building. I’ve never seen anything like it! This is gonna be one helluva an election.
I went at 6:50 and was the 9th person to vote. No lines, but I met two people on their way out as I went in, and one person on her way in as I went out, so business looked steady. I think the half an hour between my vote and your passing the poll, Evil may have made a significant difference.
However, this is supposed to be a debate. So I guess I’ll have to say that your line was in fact very short (if only you had the sense to see it), and demand a cite!
It was totally nuts. A gymnasium stuffed as full as the bars I went to in college. The line I was told to go on was about 50+ people long, and moving very slow. Since it’s just around the corner, I decided to go back at 10am, maybe it’ll be a bit less crowded then.
Arrived at Columbus Ohio polling place at 6:20 am…finished voting at 7:45 AM. I gave out my cell phone to anyone who needed to call in to work to explain about being late.
Very short, since I was at the polling place a few seconds after 6 Central Time. I was the 4th person to vote. Things got slowed down a little since the ballot-reading device basically choked on my ballot. They switched to the old-fashioned metal box with a drop slot. Hope that’s the last I hear about voting irregularities today.
The polling place for my neighborhood is right around the corner from my house, so I decided to stop in on my way to work (which is no more than five blocks from either my house or the polling place). No line, but I met someone coming out while I was going in and someone coming in while I was going out, so it’s not like they’re having a moribund morning. Big, old-fashioned lever voting machine, too. First time I’ve used one of those.
At least I know my vote will be counted, unlike those poor souls in touch-screen country.
About double the “normal” length, according to the poll worker we asked. We got there a little after 6 am. When we were leaving, the line was pretty short (perhaps 5 deep).
There was an “observer” lady, hovering over the tables where we sign in, making sure that we have ID, that we were who we claimed to be. Don’t know what “side” she was on—she seemed pleasant enough. I even joked with her a little bit. (Told her my sister—who came with me—was from Mars and therefore wasn’t a legal resident.)
My wife arrived at our polling place at 6:10 (:50 before the polls opened), and was about a hundred people deep. She finished voting at 7:45. She estimates that the line was four times as long when she left (about a three hour wait time).
The lines have always been long, but I estimate that that is about twice as bad as I have ever seen it (which was probably the Clinton/Bush in '92). Looks like a big turnout in Georgia.
My employer is pretty flexible, so I’ll wait a couple of hours before I go.
My husband just called to tell me to go up early - five people got in line after he came in.
On the other hand, we still use punch-card ballots. Must make sure I have no hanging chads, but then I’ve always been careful about that.
Went at 6:50, found out they don’t open until 8:00. Came back at 7:50, and there was at least 100 people in line. D’oh!! Will try again in an hour or so.
Here in the habitrail system, there were plenty of hamsters lined up at 6:45 and by the time they opened the official voting tunnel it was probably 100 long. Some people were complaining that they weren’t open and said “finally!” when they did open, even though it was 7:00 on the button. The line moved fairly quickly, and I was out of there by 7:15. The line was a bit longer when I left, but was moving briskly. I don’t think it’s that bad, but it is easily twice as many people as I’m used to seeing, and I always vote early.
I was disappointed to hear two people say, “I can’t vote!” when they saw the line, even though they stayed. Work places need to let people vote and send a clear message that workers can come in late if there are lines. Of course, people also need to plan ahead – vote absentee, if they have to, or vote early where it is allowed.
There was an obvious “poll observer” sitting and watching the voters. Since he was off in a corner, I’m not sure what he’s looking for. No doubt some pimpy looking guy with a big 'fro, “I’m here to commit frawd, yo!” Then the College Republican will jump up and point at him. “Not so fast, Superfly!” he will shout. He will single handedly save this battleground state for Bush, and get invited to the inaugeral ball, where he’ll end up making out with one or both of the Bush twins underneath the bandstand. Or something like that. I don’t know what he thinks he’s doing.
The line at my polling place was about 20 long when the poll opened at 7:00. Probably twice as long as usual, but not outrageous. My neighborhood probably leans Republican, so I anticipate the crowds there being relatively light.
I live in a big city, and my neighborhood has a pretty good percentage of African Americans (hence the “poll observer”), gay couples, young people, working class union folks, etc. I think that voter turnout in my neighborhood is a good sign for Kerry. I would guess that less than 10 of the people I saw at the polls voted for Bush.
There were somewhere near 100 people in line ahead of me at 6:40 am. Finished through line and voting at 7:40. Someone passed out a summary of the ballot initiatives and a “cheat sheet” to allow people to mark their choices before they got to the machines. It did seem it took the older voters longer at the touch screens than younger folks. They did have a touch screen demo you could watch once you were inside the actually building. The demo candidates included Lincoln, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Washington.
Mine weren’t bad at all: there were maybe 20 people ahead of me in line when I got there at 7:50 am, and it took me ten minutes to get to the front of line, check in, vote, and get out. Smooth & easy.
Daniel
I was in line about 6:40, and was out by about 7:40. The line was quite long.
It seemed to me that the bitter old church ladies at the sign-in tables were giving the evil eye to anyone who looked halfway liberal. That might just be my imagination.
However, I did have to cough up an extra ID to convince one of them I was registered in that precinct. She wanted to send me away. I was quite leaning towards flipping her table into her lap, thankfully a poll watcher stepped in and told her I was cool and that she needed to let me through, now. After an hour I just wanted to vote and get out.
Let my vote be the one that pushes Kerry over the top in Florida!
I got to the polls around 6:55 and the line already was snaking to the end of the block from the poll. There was one poll watcher, but she didn’t say a word to anyone while I was there. I voted around 8:05.
