Posted on 10/20/2004 10:22:48 AM PDT by JFC
Texans flock to polls as early voting begins Local races may be force behind big turnout
Associated Press
A total of 144,598 people voted in the state's 15 most populous counties Monday, the first day of early in-person voting for the Nov. 2 election, according to the Texas Secretary of State's Office. That easily surpassed the first-day total for those counties in the presidential elections of 1996 and 2000.
In Lubbock County, 2,888 voters cast ballots the first day of early voting, according to the county's elections office.
It's too early to say how the first-day turnout will compare to previous election cycles when calculated as a percentage of registered voters, said Bill Kenyon, spokesman for Secretary of State Geoff Connor. Still, a number of counties are experiencing high early voting turnout, Kenyon said.
"The early evidence suggests that it may be local races driving some of that," he said.
There were 12.9 million registered voters in Texas as of Sept. 17. An updated number is expected to be released next week.
While the presence of Texan George W. Bush on the presidential ballot has certainly attracted some voters, other down-ballot contests also are getting attention. Among them: hot congressional races in the wake of Republican-pushed redistricting and a tax proposal that would pay for a 75,000-seat stadium for the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington.
Election officials in Tarrant and Bexar counties reported setting records for first-day early voting totals.
The largest counties' totals Monday were 20,868 in Harris County; 20,566 in Dallas County; 15,375 in Bexar County; 17,685 in Tarrant County; 15,983 in Travis County; and 7,051 in El Paso County. All those were higher than the first-day totals for early voting four years ago.
On the first Monday of in-person early voting four years ago, a total of 84,809 cast ballots in the 15 biggest-population counties. That year, early voting started in some counties over the preceding weekend. So by the end of the first Monday of early voting that year 132,512 voters had cast ballots — still less that this year's first-day total.
Early voting runs until Oct. 29. People don't need a reason to vote early in person.
"It's more convenient, as far as you get to set your schedule, and it gives you a variety of places to vote from. And people do seem to be using it more and more," Kenyon said. Voters may go to any polling station in a county during early voting but must report to their assigned neighborhood precincts on Election Day.
Some voters experienced waits of up to an hour Monday.
A line stretched down a hall and to the exit door of a Cameron County office building in Harlingen, where Lassey Dahlstrom, 76, and a number of other senior citizens waited. Dahlstrom said she had been voting early in Texas for years, but that she never before had to wait.
"See, I had to get here first," she said.
Me, my wife and my parents all went this morning. Wooooohoooooooooo!!!!!! Felt REEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAL good!!!!!!!!!
At the courthouse I voted at they said turnout was a record in Johnson co too (just south of tarrant)
I will vote early since I have to work at a polling place on Nov. 2.
I knew whom I would vote for in 2004 already
in 2000.
RE-ELECT BUSH CHENEY!~
On to VICTORY 2004!!!!
I went yesterday (the second day of early voting) at 8:30 a.m. in Flower Mound (Denton County) and the line was 30 minutes. I've never seen an early voting line that long, even on the first day. I left, as did others. I came back today at 10:00 a.m. and the line was 45 minutes long.
Didnt it? I was like a boulder off my shoulder or a monkey off my back.
This could help with the popular vote this time around... We need to run up the numbers in the South and Southwest...
First Day {Early Voting in TX} Sets Voting Records
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1250893/posts
I plan on voting early here in Florida (Broward County), but all I see is Kerry supporters and their signs in front of the building. I think the Dems have decided that this will be one of their tactics.. Get people to vote early, so that there wont be much of a line for the actual election, and they will have an easier time of convincing the homeless and intoxicated to vote.
Well, not that Texas is in play, but I don't like this 'early voting' stuff. Sounds like it's ripe for Dems to take advantage of.
I predict that by 2012, technology will exist that will allow you to block all incoming political ads AFTER you've voted...
Well, "early and often" is their mantra... Early voting just makes it easier for the same person to show up to the polls more than once with less chance of being noticed.
I voted yesterday in Bexar County. I waited on line for about 15 minutes, and that was with 8 voting machines available.
I think that it is a good sign for Bush, as the area of the county that I'm in is quite conservative. Texas is obviously not in doubt, but this will help with the popular vote.
Aren't we Texans kinda, you know, owed one given what happened four years ago?
Voted straight Republican ticket from Iowa. Had to leave the judges, etc., blank because I didn't know anything about any of them.
That's what I was thinking.
I voted Monday morning... they split the line in 2 by alphabet & I still waited 20 minutes just to sign in! I live in Wichita county, about 2 hours NW of DFW. It didn't hurt the turnout that we are voting for state reps. The incumbent is Dem David Farabee. His challenger is Republican Shirley Craft who's driving home the fact that Farabee was one of the cowards who ran to OK last year when the redistricting proposal was up in Austin. He camped out in OK for 2 weeks! I don't know about you guys, but if I was AWOL from my job for 2 weeks, I would definitely be fired! That's what we're trying to do to Farabee. Felt great to vote early... 4 MORE YEARS!!!
How are the results of the early voters kept secret? Surely the county electio staff must know how the voting is going, especially in counties with electronic voting? Anyone know?
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