Election Update: Anything Rocking Your Vote?

Main Street, Clarksburg, WV. 11/4/08 by CHS.

We were out early this morning, dropping off call sheets at local Dem HQ from last night’s final round of GOTV calls.

I caught the local fire department putting up the American flags along Main Street for Election Day, and snapped a quick picture of small town doings. No line out the door at our local polling place, but plenty of cars in the parking lot and at other locations this morning as well.

Here are some of your reports on voting across the country:

– Solai: "Just returned from voting. No problem here in my little CNY town. And, no new-fangled machines. Push down the lever, open the curtain and you’re done. I have absolute confidence that my vote will be counted. Can’t believe that it’s not that way everywhere. If I didn’t know better, I’d think it was intentional."

– Southern Dragon: "Just got back from voting. Number 220. Every page of the sign-in book was filled with signatures or “already voted” stamp for absentee voters. 25 minutes from truck to truck. 5 lines for sign-in with 3-4 people in each line. Constant. Largest turnout I’ve seen in my 25+ years here. Smooth, efficient operation. One guy in front of me didn’t know he had to register to vote. Provisional ballot meet Mr Not Payin’ Attention."

– Raven: "It was a cakewalk at our polling place when we walked by with the pupsters but our neighborhood is pretty politically aware so I’m not sure whatup elsewhere in Athens."

– katymine: "Just dropped my early ballot at the Polls in my precinct (I’m a PC so yes it is mine) and for the first time in 10 years…. I saw lines…… the church parking lot was full and people were parking on the street…. had to walk quite a bit and the line wove around and out the door at 7:10 am….. IN Arizona….. All ages…..Thankfully with my early ballot, I just crashed the line and dropped it off in the box….. WOW there were 20 plus voting stations…… Did not catch how many scanners were assigned."

– previouslyTdash: "Just back in from lily white capital R Atlanta precinct. I took my 6 year old at 6:45 and the line was 50 yards long, an hour wait. So I took him on to school and was back in line at 7:45. Took an hour and 15 minutes. Poll worker, high school friend’s mom, said 1 machine for 185 voters."

How’s the vote going where you are?

Election Protection has updated their blog notes on reported problems nationwide as well:

As of 10am, Election Protection has received over 27,000 calls to the 1-866-OUR-VOTE Hotline since the phones opened at 5:30am this morning.

VIRGINIA
We have seen the situation on the ground in Virginia change drastically over the past hour. Election Protection is calling for the courts to keep the polls open an additional two hours.

MICHIGAN
There are widespread reports of line lines, lack of ample poll workers and general disorganization, resulting in waits as long as two hours. Machine malfunctions are also contributing long lines and in some cases poll workers administering polling through paper ballots. Some voters are expressing concern over the security of their ballots in these situations.

FLORIDA
We have received multiple reports that optical scanning machines are broken in Tallahassee, Tampa, Broward County and Miami-Dade County.  

Also, CNN is reporting that FL voters need to fill out the constitutional amendments sections on their ballots or the optical scan machines pop them back out as an undervote.  Something to keep in mind…

Stay tuned for more updates.