***Operation 4 More Years - Situation Room - Day 1 - LIVE THREAD***

Various | 2 November 2004 | Various

[An.American.Expatriate]

As I and many of my fellow expatriates are often hard pressed to get any non-biased information from the media (we are often stuck with CNN-International!!), I have decided to start this thread in the tradition of the Operation Iraqi Freedom Situation Room threads.  I hope this meets with the approval of Jim & John and the Admin guys . . .

The purpose of this thread is to be a place to collect information from all sources into one area for discussion.  Specific threads for specific topics and cross linking are highly encouraged.

[Josh in PA]

I planned on voting after I get off work at 3:15.

A woman who works in the cubicle across the aisle (Bush voter) said she was going to vote in the morning, but there were hundreds in line.

Her precinct is in Montoursville, PA, where Cheney was last Friday when he drew 3500 people into an airport hangar (and thousands of others were turned away).

Lycoming County went to Bush in 2000 62% to 34%.. it's one of the larger Central PA counties.

[Toespi]

Also in the Columbus area, suburbs! My husband went to vote at 6:30, at least 2000 people in line!!! This is a precinct that is Bush all the way and one that the longest wait, in the past, has been five minutes! GO BUSH!!!

[cardinal4]

Drizzling here in STL and 52 degs. It supposed to stop raining, but be cloudy all day..

[usafsk]

Just voted in Warren County, Ohio. Mason to be exact. Line was out the door at the local Baptist Church polling place upon arrival at 6:30AM. Took about 45 minutes to wind through the line. What you should know is that Warren County was the fastest growing county in Ohio last year, as well as very much a red state. This is adjacent to West Chester, where we had 50,000 show up to see W in early October. Since I only recently moved here, I had to rely on others in line to gauge turnout. Their answer was that it was like nothing they'd ever seen. So, Red Area, Red County, Red State has about 90% turnout today.

Also, our sister county, also very Red, is expecting 80+%. Turnout is not bad for W. Issue 1 in Ohio, gay marriage, is getting everyone out. Also, there is in an issue in the city of Cincinnati that would repeal a city ordinance that prevents the city from granting any special rights to gays. This has energized the evangelical blacks in the city. How much? Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, a hero of the civil rights movement, is appearing in commercials against it. I think these issues will bring out the evangelical black vote and give them a moment of pause before they choose a President.

[shezza]

Day 1 - LOL! I see you're living that Boy Scout motto: "Be Prepared"!

[PJ-Comix]

All people holding umbrellas as we have rain this morning.

RAIN! Interesting. This will depress the RAT vote. I don't see MTV types standing in the rain to vote. Yeah, they will go to free Rock The Vote concerts but to actually VOTE in the rain?---NAW!!!

[babydubya1981]

I went to the polls @ 5:45 A.M. this morning in Chesapeake Virginia with my 6 month daughter on my hip, in district 4. When I arrived there was only about 5 people there, by the time the doors opened there were about 30-35. I would say about 75% were black voters (this is a predominately black low-middle class area) and average age was 45 or so. I saw someone putting up signs on the street near the school while waiting in line and when he drove up I could see he was black, and I automatically assumed that he was putting up Kerry signs, but when we left the polling place it was BUSH AND FORBES SIGNS!!!

Anyways, I only had to wait in line about 15 minutes and it was very civil. I do have a question though.

BUSH WAS SECOND ON THE LIST BEHIND JOHN KERRY ON THE PUNCH CARD. I ALMOST PUNCHED IN THE FIRST HOLE BECAUSE I ASSUMED BUSH WOULD BE FIRST. BUT I CHECKED LIKE 5 TIMES TO MAKE SURE *LOL* SO IS THAT NORMAL THAT THE INCUMBENT IS SECOND???? I FOUND THAT ODD.

[Josh in PA]

See post 181.

[GodBlessUSA]

Hi Finnman69

I'm not speaking from experience but I put a link with Republican organization in NY and maybe someone there can direct you. Copy and paste for info. I'd report it too because it seems suspicious. If anything just wrong.
http://www.google.com/local?hl=en&lr=&q=republican+organizations&near=New+York,+NY&oi=localr

Good luck!

[PeteB570]

Cumberland County.

Solid D'rat but we add our republican votes to the state total.

[ABG(anybody but Gore)]

I was number 7 at my precinct at Lafayette High. Voted Bush, Vitter and Charles Boustany. ;^)

[PJ-Comix]

Just voted in Warren County, Ohio.

Weather? I would like to see weather reports for all Battleground States.

[Tymesup]

Two Kerry and one Bush bumper stickers in Clifton (northern) New Jersey at 7 this morning. A lot of those We Support Our Troops ribbons, whatever that means.

The two clerks seemed to be working, although one was inexperienced. There were two people sitting behind them, presumably vote challengers. My voter registration card worked as ID. I signed both the registration book and a tear-off card.

[Rokurota]

IS THAT NORMAL THAT THE INCUMBENT IS SECOND????

Don't know if it is normal, but Bush was on the second row for me, too. I checked about 10 times before making my vote final.

[SlowBoat407]

Norfolk Virginia - at 6:30 the line was already out the door, and the precinct veterans say they have never seen turnout this big.

[MEG33]

Oh dear! My first vote for President was in 1956 for Eisenhower!

[The Hound Passer]

"In my area, there are lots and lots of B/C bumper stickers"

Yeah, but up here in NoVA it's K/E stickers 2 or 3 to 1. This is Bush's fate in VA might rest. Lots more libs here than in 2000. I'm hoping the rest of the state will pick up the slack.

[newzjunkey]

I voted absentee/early at the local Registrar's office.

VIVA BUSH!

Come on, California Freepers, let's stop the gutting of three-strikes, stop raising and creating of new taxes, stop the billion dollar bond measures for junk science and corporate welfare.

Come on, San Diego Freepers, let's save our War Memorial, and landmark, the Mt Soledad Cross (YES on K!).

[oblomov]

RCP has WY going for Kerry????!

[An.American.Expatriate]

What we are hoping for this day: