*** OFFICIAL "I VOTED" THREAD #2 ***

We've got a bunch of competing "I voted" threads, and it's difficult to find everyone's voting story. Some members have asked to have an official "I voted" thread so we can all meet in one place. After you vote, please post in this thread to tell us about it. If you've already posted your voting story in another thread, feel free to post it again here. And don't forget to assign yourself an "I Voted" avatar!

IMPORTANT: After you post your voting story in this thread, take a moment to go post positive, pro-Kerry voting experiences on blogs and message boards for your local newspapers and other media. Let's help spread the word that we're excited to vote for the Kerry-Edwards ticket!

When this thread gets too long, we'll open another one.

I vote in a small precinct, where usually the poll workers are bored. This morning there was a line and I was number 62 (I voted about 7:30, so this was really good) and there were 10 behind me. When I came outside, a guy was standing by my car with an ugly face, looking at my bumper stickers. When he saw me and realized that I was an older woman with grey temples, he went to his truck, that sported W04 stickers and one for Matt Blunt, Missouri's Republican candidate for governor.

If I had been a guy, I'd probably have been yelled at or gotten into a fight.

Is this how it is going to be all day???

?

I was voter #242 today. For the first time, I had to wait in line for more than just a few minutes. And this is in a sleepy small New England town that will probably go 70% for Kerry. People are getting out and contributing to the popular vote!

Rock and roll, Kerry and Edwards!

Many Minneapolis stations have a special voting booth for kids - they're going to tally the kid vote and present the results later.

One disurbing incident:
A Repuke challenger kicked a "Voter Assistance" van out of the parking lot .

Washburn H.S. (49th St. & Pleasant) The van had a non-partisan sign for "Voter Assistance". I walked over to thank her for being there, and she looked a little shook up. A Republican challenger had just told her she had to leave the parking lot, so she found a place on the street at 49th and Pleasant (just 30 ft. from where she was in the parking lot).

If anyone is going to be in the neighborhood, please make sure she's not being harassed and tell her "Thank you!"

Me, the missus, and my older son. By 7:30AM the vote count was already 127 and a line stretching out the door.

I've been voting in northern virginia for over 30 years. Never had to stand in line more than 5 minutes. This morning, stood in a line of over 100 votes for over 50 minutes. And nobody left. Saw lots of Kerry bumper stickers in the parking lot; not one B-C. And I love my local voting place -- one of the most ethnically diverse elementary schools in the country: the bathroom signs are in 7 different languages!!

onenote

Very quiet and mellow. *Sigh* no war stories here in Mass! Bought a good muffin from the bake sale though.

I had to check to make sure.

More people than usual, but still not much of a line.

Although on the voter list, some people's names had "ID" next to them, meaning the poll worker had to check their ID. Maybe these were newly registered, but there were only a handful of them.

My coworker in downtown Boston said it took him 2 hours to vote!

(this is also on a thread in GD.)

I was probably one of a handful of Democratic voters at my precinct, this being such a Republican area that Republicans are running unopposed in local races (I did not, however, vote for any of them...I wrote in "None" in every race without a Democrat or third-party candidate). I had to wait in line over an hour (small precinct, only six voting machines), and I was the 86th voter of the day.

I was, however, encouraged by a few things that happened this morning. I stopped off at a convenience store to buy a newspaper and a couple of bottles of Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino to make the wait bearable, and got into a conversation with the woman behind the counter...she told me she intends to vote for Kerry. And as I was leaving, I said to her "Here's hoping when we wake up tomorrow the world will be a slightly better place". A guy who'd just come in (young, white, late teens-early 20's) overheard me, and said "What, you mean a new President?"

I responded "Yeah. We need to kick that Bush bastard out of the White House."

"I heard THAT", he said, which kind of surprised me.


And as I was waiting on line, a bus full of high school students drove by, and a girl shouted out the window "I hope none of you people are voting for Bush!"

Norcross. We just got back from voting. Somewhat long lines, it took us about 45 min to get to the machine. Same thing for us, many offices with only a republican running including the associate pastor of our former church for state rep. As always i refused to vote for anyone running unopposed.

The polls opened at 7am. People were already lined up and waiting to vote at 6am according to one of the poll workers at my eastside poll location! There are cars overflowing parking lots at the pollings places. Cars are parked on the sides of the roads and in nearby parking lots. My husband waited for over 1 1/2 hours in a early voting line last week. I've never seen so many voters in my more than 20 years here.

I voted in Prince George's County MD. A heavily African-American and Democratic precinct with no particularly big local contests. I never saw such a long line to vote as this morning.

Half the neighbors were there so we visited.

On edit, the red "X" is supposed to be the I voted avatar. I had a devil of a time getting my Bobby Sands image to work and figure if I change it now, it's lost forever.

The poll was more busy than usual- more poll workers and a bunch of people getting registered. There was also a nice looking woman with a "legal aid" sticker on standing between the 2 tables keeping a close eye on everything. Moveon.org and one of my neighbors had a table set up across the way with drinks/cookies and voting rights info.

I cried when I voted but I wasn't the only one- I saw another women with 2 kids crying while she voted.

The area I live in is GOP, but slowly turning Dem. Turnout always bodes well for Dems in this rural central MI county. Longest lines I have ever seen this morning.


Kerry and the nation are in my prayers today!

Myself, my brother and my mom all went together to vote. It was busy, all the booths were full and one of the poll workers reminded everybody to check to make sure that all the chads were cleared. I voted and some of the holes were stiff to push through. When I took out my card I noticed one pregnant chad. I poked it out and turned in my card.

I have hope for Missouri but we will see.

Mine, my husband's, and my son's.

Normally no wait, today a 15 minute wait.

Lever machines.

I stood in line for an hour. I saw quite a few people that looked around my age (21). Voted straight Dem. Go Richard Romero! Go John Kerry!

...of downtown Orlando in very Republican Seminole county...waited an hour and twenty minutes to use paper ballots (where you blacken in the oval) and things were generally running smoothly...the wait was strictly due to to volume of people. I arrived at 6:45 and the line was already 100 yards long...maybe longer. There was a sense of quiet determination among the voters...very diverse bunch of people.
In a strange way, the act of voting had a very calming effect on me...I can now watch the returns in a relatively serene state of mind.

Even though we're a red state, DAMN it felt good. Waiting is about 30 minutes, poll workers said that line stretched around the building before the poll opened.

My polling place in Newbury Park opened at 7:00 AM. When I arrived at 6:50, I was number 22 in line. By the time the poll opened, there were over 40 people in line. The last time I voted, there were maybe 5 or 6 people in line at 7:00 AM. The turnout here is going to be HUGE!

Weehaa. buncha people, i went early at 7:30. Good turnout, probably 35+. A few people my age, which was even more surprising.

They all looked bleary eyed but happy. Everyone I heard quietly talking was talking good things...

I overheard the two gentlemen in front of me talking about how good it was when Clinton was still around. And saying they missed 'em. ;)

.jc.

Unusual long line when the poll opened; even longer after we voted. Little traffic during my usually heavy commute and empty lot at work. People coming in late now. Looks like turnout is heavy on this MA/NH border.

GO KERRY!!!!!!!!!

North Austin (Williamson county) and there were about 20-30 people waiting in line when I got there.

I took my four year old daughter with me and showed her the ballot and explained to her what I was doing. My mom did that with me when I was a child and it made me fascinated with the process.

No problems to report. No challengers that I could see and the wonderful people volunteering were nice and efficient.

As we were walking out though, my daughter was upset that "John President" wasn't there. Since we voted for him, she thought he should have been there. :)

We're in a small city, only had to wait about five minutes. As we were leaving, though, the parking lot was really filling up.

Straight Democrat for Me & the Mister. :-)

Woohoo!

who had a huge Bush/Cheney button and I went up and told him he wasn't allowed to wear it in the polling place. He muttered something under his breath and one of the poll workers seemed to agree with him and then said "well, technically your aren't supposed to do that". But he didn't ask him to take it off.

I was f**ing pissed - and this is in NYC!

Nobody said anything.

10th Precinct - Wicker Park

In at 7:30 out by 7:45.

The line was building as we were leaving.

In, in damn spot! I cast the 39th vote at my polling place. HARD rain and wind, which is scary because our cable performance is way too dependent on the weather.

2 lawyers.

Even though this is a heavily Dem area (80+%), it seemed rather tense this morning... like we were all expecting random repukes to start some shit by challenging voters.

A baby (20 something) AP exit poller was writing down everything people said.

To a voter, everyone told him that the fate of the planet was at at stake today.

I only saw one obvious repuke, who complained into his cell phone that it didn't look good for Bush* today.

Central Wisconsin. My small city usually goes Republican by small margin but I hoping for a Kerry victory here.

Good luck to Democrats everywhere.

Greene Co., Southwestern PA. I was number 100 at 10:00 a.m. This is a very small town with a little over 500 people registered to vote. Over 400 of the registered voters are Democrats. Yay!

I voted the straight Democratic ticket, which included Joe Hoeffel for Senator. And, yes, we had poll watchers. We use the touch screen voting machines.

My husband and I woke up bright and early this morning, and were at the polls before 6:00. The doors were already open and there were several people in line in front of us. What I love the most about our area is that we cast our ballots by filling in ovals with black marker - no confusion there! We got back in the car and I looked at the clock: 5:57 am. Hubby took today off so he can drive people to the polls.

Local US consul is a competent, professional dude (I can't even tell his political persuasion -- he's that good), and made a strong effort to get American votes into his diplomatic pouch.

I'm pretty sure mine got to my polling place.

I was nervous about the weather today -- it was dreary, chilly and rainy early this a.m. in southeast Michigan -- but now at mid-morning it's clearing up. I'll be driving Dems to the polls if they need a ride. I was in and out in a flash this morning. Pretty crowded, but things don't get crazy here until after 5pm. I walked out with a HUGE smile on my face, I don't think I've ever been more proud to vote in my life (I'll be 44 on the 18th). And I was damned proud, as a person with many gay friends, to vote NO on the attempt to insert bigotry into the Michigan constitution. On a church sign up the street, their sign today says: PROTECT MARRIAGE. LOVE YOUR SPOUSE. (It's such a nice surprise to see a church on Jesus' side once in awhile.)

Michigan is blue... all you can see on the Repuke faces here is flop sweat.

002 A
OFFICIAL BALLOT
PRESIDENTIAL GENERAL ELECTION
COUNTY OF VENTURA
November 2, 2004
001273

I voted...I hope that I am a part of a much needed change in our country.

-P

Two more for Kerry, Mikulski and VanHollen. Big turnout, heavily Democratic precinct.

town. Lots of young people (campus of IUP). IUP students are usually non-voters, but they are really out today. (Micheal Moore was here last week) Weather was overcast, but now the sun is out. Occasional rain expected later in the day.

(sorry I made separate post earlier)

for about 15 minutes. It was fun, saw neighbors and chatted. I have NEVER stood in line to vote that I recall. This is good for the Dems. And when I was done, there was an even bigger line waiting to vote.

Lancaster County is a heavily Repug county - registration is 2 to 1 Repugs. The city is slightly Democratic, however. (I live in the city). If Kerry gets a good margin in the city, that will cut into Bush's plurality in the county.

The precinct that I live in includes a college, so we are getting lots of students voting. The county Repug chairman was complaining that students should not be allowed to vote because their primary residence is elsewhere. Needless to say, he was ignored. Those Repugs will try anything to block potential Democratic voters. :spank:

As we were walking into the polling place, we saw a neighbor who has a Bush sign in his yard. He said to my husband, "I heard the Democrats are bringing guys from the jail to vote." My husband (who is never at a loss for a quick response) said, "Yeah, and I'm one of them." Neighbor laughed and I said, "He must think we're Republicans." And my husband said, "Not anymore!"

Forgot to say I voted straight Democrat this time. We use lever machines. I usually split my ticket but not this time!

I voted last night in Ruskin - there was a 2 1/2 hour line. Felt great to finally be able to vote for Kerry. I saw 2 other people around me wearing the yellow bracelet (I know it has other meanings, but I was hopeful it meant Kerry in this instance)

This morning at the polling place across from my kids' school, there was a very long line (probably 1 1/2 to 2 hours) I live in a republican neighborhood. If I had to guess I would say this neighborhood (6000 people) is probably 75% repub and 25% dem.

I heard several comments about not caring about the length of the line because this time your vote matters.

I will be volunteering at GOTV event this afternoon in Tampa.

YEAH! :D

At the local VFW. No lines, just one other voter present.

This town has become a FOX News-watching Bush haven, and I feel like one of the few who voted Kerry/Edwards.

Heavily Democratic area... waited about 90 minutes.

Light rain here... not bad though

I got an "I Voted" sticker!! Waited in line for about 40 minutes, my own little poll found me surrounded by fellow Democrats. The atmosphere was upbeat, workers were helpful - no problems at all. A lady in front of me had her 9 month old daughter in tow and I took a photo of them - it will go in the baby's scrapbook as evidence she "voted" for Kerry. I feel really good right now. :bounce:

I voted a couple of minutes after 7:00 AM here in W. PA.


At my normally sleepy polling place, the little blue-haired ladies were in full force, orchestrating things. I was voter number 8. I was wearing my black hoodie (unzipped with the hood down) and ready for action!

In front of me was a young black guy, which was interesting because my town is very white and kinda old. The poll lady said to both of us: "Boy, you guys are on the ball today!" I wasn't sure what she meant, so I said "we sure are!" She said that she had never seen it this busy so early in the morning, and I replied that I was surprised too. Voting was uneventful, no poll watchers or challengers that I could tell, but then I really didn't expect any, either.

This is bunnyj, Senior Hometown Correspondent, reporting. Back to you, Skinner!

The parking lot was packed which was surprising. Where I go is a small polling place. It's usually fairly quick to get in and out. I waited over half an hour.

What was surprising to see were the representatives from the local candidates outside still looking for votes. Another surprise was the signs planted around the place. This is Ketron Middle School. I thought those weren't allowed on public property. I don't know the laws of TN regarding this.

We used the Microvote machines which look really old. Push the button, there's a light next to your candidate of choice and when you have made all your selections, it sounds like the old 486 computer I used to have.

I'm proud to have voted and I consider this the first step of working to get a thief out of the WH.

On edit: I forgot to mention this. There was a table off to the side which had a sign that said: Fail Safe Officials

My best guess is this was for provisional ballots.

to live in a place that will very likely not experience any problems. This is one of the areas in Massachusetts that is even more liberal than the average in the state, so "disrupters" won't bother. (Yes, we are obviously very, very evil. By law, we are required to hide out horns before entering the voting booth.)

In the 10 minutes I was in the polling place, there were at least 3 new voters, identifiable because 1)there may have been a registration question on two women (who were together), and 2)one gentleman didn't understand how to use the optical scan ballot.

The city's well trained poll captain was right there to the rescue of all three in an efficient and professional manner.

The city clerk said Thursday she expects up-wards of 80% turnout. I wouldn't be surprised to see 85% to 90%. We normally have high 70s in presidential elections. This morning was busy, but typically efficient.

At 7:15AM there was already a long line for the 6 punch-card voting booths. By the time I was done voting at 7:50AM, the line was stretching out the door.

My wife and I both voted for Kerry/Edwards, and took our 5-year old daughter along for the experience. It took about a half hour at 7:30 this morning.

Also, a co-worker of mine has been on the fence for some time. We went to lunch yesterday and I gave her my last-ditch appeal. Today she came in and told me that she decided to vote for Kerry.

Rich

30 minute wait this morning, although, after I voted, the line had gotten considerably longer.
One young woman, (mid twenties), appeared to have some problems around her registration. She was in tears because of the confusion and her concern that she might not be able to vote. However, the election judges got the issue straightened out and she was brought to the front of the line for voting.

I'm so relieved and excited. And happy to have my avatar, finally. MKJ

edited to add....It was great voting for President Kerry and Senator Salazar....

Voted for Kerry/Edwards and Barbara Mikulski (US Senate)

I thought about waiting until today, but I couldn't stand the suspense any longer and had to cast my vote. I must've checked it over at least five times, too! Nothing had changed after the first time, but I just couldn't force myself to submit the ballot until I'd gone over it again and again and again.... And, no, I do not have OCD. ;)

7 and 5

educated them on why its important to vote and to have a reason to vote..I told them dont vote because someone tells you to...vote for a reason

disappointed as I was the only one wearing a black hoodie in the line :(

waited about 20 minutes to vote

got in there and one voting machine was having a problem

but it went relatively smooth

Long lines here.....

our polls opened at 7AM, i got there a few minutes after and had to double park with the flashers on because the lot was full! i was voter #6 at our set of machines, and voted straight democratic ticket. it looks like there was good early turnout -- lines were already forming, and this was in a heavily democratic area.

no matter what the news networks spew (which i've given up watching, anyway) i still don't believe that PA is a swing state -- it's going to go to kerry.

cheers!

People were in line BEFORE the polls opened, long time poll worker said that has never happened before. :-) I was number 162 at 10am, that's more than double the usual total number!

Great GOTV and registration effort here, we're showing bush what hard work really accomplishes.

The line was down the block to enter the polling place. I have never seen anything like this turnout. Both my floor neighbors were there; as well as, people from the co-op next door!

I didn't even look at The Republican column when I got behind the curtain. I hit every Democratic name and helped to elect John Kerry and John Edwards our next President and Vice -President!

I suspect similar turnout across our great country!

I feel absolutely terrific!

Thank You, DU!

Very nice group of volunteers, and a phalanx of nice houses emblazoned with Kerry signs greet you on the walk there. MN should go Kerry, if we had anything to say about it.

I used to live on Grand Ave., back when I was in college. That was where I cast my first ever vote, for Clinton, in 1992.

Not many people in line when we got there (Humboldt H.S). The lunchtime crowd was building by the time we left. I'll bet the after-work crowd will be tremendous.

45 minute wait here in rural NC.

Lotsa elderly folks out... must be the time of day.

My voting trip was fairly uneventful, but there were a few things that did stand out:

1. No signage indicating which table to sign in at. They had three tables and each one had a piece of notebook paper taped to it indicating a district number, and only after I got in line at the wrong table did I realize that my registration card had the number on there, albeit not particularly prominently.

2. Poll workers. I figured out why all old women work the polls, besides a good civic duty and responsibility -- they are probably retired and have the day off! :) Seriously though, when I finally got in the right line to sign in, *I* was the one to point out my name on the rolls. Between two of them they couldn't find my name until I happened to point it out to them a minute later. This only concerns me because there might be a lot of people who don't have my assertiveness and they might have been turned away if not found, or thought they couldn't vote.

On the other hand, I didn't see any younger generation helping out at the polls. If I could take the day off, a la a election day holiday, I probably would have worked the polls and done my civic duty.

3. No request for ID. I voluntarily produced an older registration card, a newer registration card, and my driver's license before I signed in, but I was never once asked for any identification before signing.

Other than that the line was short and the process fairly smooth. Kerry's going to pulp Senor Flightsuit here in New York State.

Mike

Wifey pooh and I were numbers nine and ten and when we left, we had trouble getting out of the parking lot-there were so many vehicles coming in. This at a tiny rural township in Jefferson county, Illinois. Wifey and I held arms and kissed more this morning than in the past week. Poll worker said there were normally about six hundred folks voting in this twp. I'll be willing to bet very few adults fail to vote, this time. One way ticket to Crawl-ferd for the Boosh bastards! More at peace (nervously) today than in months. Love you, everybody!

And I mean small. I live in a township where only 277 people voted in the last pres election. They're expecting over 300 today.

Got there about 10 minutes before it opened and stood in line with about 15 others. Everyone was very upbeat, almost relieved that election day was finally here. Our town treasurer even mentioned that she hoped it was all sorted out today and didn't drag on like the last election.

I harbor no delusions that my township has a chance of going for Kerry, but I know Wisconsin will and that's all that matters.

I voted 6:30 AM(even wore the black hoodie!). Only toook 20 minutes. I convinced my father to vote for Kerry as well, as a gift to his grandson's future!!

Polling place was busy, but no lines. There are 4 different city wards crammed into the VFW hall where I vote. One more for Kerry, Fingerhut, and Weirauch.

in Illinois for Kerry/Edwards and our next great Senator Obama. Go Kerry. It was steady but no huge line yet. We voted at my daughters school at 8:30 on punch card ballots. No hanging chads for us.

I just voted for Kerry.

My Mom, brother and I voted here in the Republican stronghold of Doniphand County, Kansas. For this little town it was heavy. It seems everyone was voting. We all marked all the Dem canidates. I still hope for Blue but it's a pipe dream. Now I gotta watch out for OBL!

Long lines when my wife and I arrived at 6:30 this morning. No problems at all.

Wasn't terribly busy, but was very early...

Had a couple people on the street ask me where the school was where my neighborhood was supposed to vote, and this made me strangly optimistic.

woo!! go kerry go!

took 10 min. tops. ALOT of very young people. Funny, they didn't look like Bush supporters.:evilgrin:

At 7:55 am PST.

A blow against tyranny, against dictatorship, against secretive government, against official lies and duplicity. It is a vote against those who would define "reality" as what they do and what they say is so regardless of empirical facts. It is a vote against those who even think that they can arrogate for themselves the privilege of determining who is and is not a citizen. It is against those who place themselves above any law, including international humanitarian law that prohibits torture and indefinite detaining of combatants.

It is a vote for America and all that America promises to be.

It wasn't heavy, but then it is a workday. Some districts are busier than others.

Very small Upper Peninsula town, population around 5200. Couldn't tell whether the people in line were blue or red, but was surprised there even was a line for a town this small. Nobody left the line.

Straight ticket Democrat for me. :)

In my tiny borough of Edgewood, outside of Pittsburgh, PA., the line was around the block by 7:30, setting a voting record. I've always considered my town predominately Republican, but the Kerry/Edwards signs are everywhere, including a handmade one that reads: "Start visualizing President John F. Kerry!" Rain was predicted this a.m. but so far it is a gorgeous, sunny, warm fall day. Now I'm off to do some phone bank calls!!

first off, my vote couldn't have been easier. I got to the polls at 10:30 thinking I would miss the pre-work crowd. I was right. walked right up to my desk, signed in and was out in 10 minutes! (don't mean to gloat)

now, that said, there were long lines for the other EDs, and, while I waited for the booth, my line increased to 10. biggest turnout i've seen at this polling place in 10+ years living here.

now, while I was walking back home these two guys (40s, beer bellies, working class Italian very common for my neighborhood) were walking towards me talking. this is what I caught:

A: You voting?
B: I dunno. Got the baby...
A: What? You're registered right?
B: Yeah. Republican.
A: Republican! Gedouttahere!! Republican? What you thinking?

I was tempted to turn around and follow them to hear the rest but it sounded like B was going to get quite a earful!

No lines, walked right in, only saw about 7 other voters in the room.

maybe the gopers aren't turning out in as large of numbers as they thought.

nt

No line at my at my precinct location - which I thought was odd at first considering how heavily Democratic and active our neighborhood is (Kerry/Edwards signs everywhere) - but then I realized most of these folks have probably already voted - and a lot of them may vote at lunch or the end of their day at work.

Regardless, if anyone in Austin is working in the Rosedale area, we may want to see about some more GOTV here!!

No irregularities to report - machine seemed to work fine. I double checked 15 times. No kidding.

Wife voted too - and all my brothers and even my sister who just turned 18 today - all voted for the first time.

And all for Kerry/Edwards :)!

A mother on line ahead of me, with two sons on Razors, listened to them about the wait (to the end of the block, very unusual) and said, "If it takes ten hours, I'll wait to vote. If it takes 12."

More like ten minutes. We have no propositions, and some candidates are on both Rep and Dem lines, some unopposed. Near as I can tell, Republicans didn't spend ten cents in New York. They starved local campaigns for the national.

I just voted in Ohio. We're a small precinct..but I've never had to wait in line before. usually there's no one in there but today, had to wait about 15 min. No problems at my polling station so far. My hubby can't vote till after work. BTW..he voted for * last time..but he's going to do like me this year..straight democratic ticket. :)

This was the first time I voted in this precinct. The polling place was a side-room of a neighborhood tavern. Lines were not long, but it took about 20 minutes as I had to use a provisional ballot. I was not on the rolls, despite a current voter registration card.

Voted at 6:30 AM in suburban Cook County. High turnout and fairly chaotic.

Got there right at 7AM and there were probably 40 people in line ahead of me. As a point of reference, for the primary this year, I arrived a 7:15 AM and was the third person to vote.

had to wait about 40 mins in Chesterfield Co. Va

It was busy, not crowded, but the poll workers and my neighbor with the Kerry sign told me it had been VERY busy between 7-8 this morning. It certainly was busier than it usually is on Election Day.

I'm feeling so hopeful!

Now, I want my new avatar and I can't figure out how to get it! Where do I find the "options" link? Thanks!

Just got back from the booth. Pretty good turnout all ready! I voted For Kerry/Edwards of course and I voted for Nancy Thompson for Congress over
"One Bill in 6 years" Lee Terry

Myself and my boyfriend voted today. Turnout was 2/3 black vs 1/3 white. Most everyone there had Democratic flyers. A 3 hour wait was more than worth it.

Go Kerry!

A few line cutters, but it went smooth.

No lines here, but that's okay because there are plenty of Republicans in this particular area.

The worst thing was seeing the big "DIEBOLD" name at the top of the machine's screen. We used to have optical scan systems which were reliable and easy -- I hate the touchscreens.

When the onscreen ballot was finished, I hesitated to hit the "cast ballot" button. I just wanted it to last, somehow. It's been a long four years waiting for the chance to vote against the Chimp. I even got a little teary looking at the name "John Kerry," and finally touched the "cast ballot," sending my vote into some ether in hopes it will be counted.

I voted!!!

Anyway, there was a long, long, long line at my voting place. Never like this before. Heavy retirement area, lots of rich folks (not me) saw a few young voters. People were generally pumped. Most are Dems. I made a comment about the Diebold machines and one elder said "that guy should be in jail." Folks are aware, they are mad, they are scared, and they are voting!!!

I live in a small suburb of Los Angeles. In the past elections it was a breeze getting in and out to vote. Today the parking lot was packed, and I waited about half an hour to get in. Not a b*sh bumper sticker in the lot. Great seeing all my neighbors there so early.

There is a massive turnout in African-American precincts! :bounce: :kick: :kick:

MS should be a DEMOCRATIC state. It disgusts me that a state that's 40% African-American elects the likes of Trent Lott to national office. If *all* the people in MS (instead of mostly just the white ones) would turn out and vote, the political scene would be very different!

Well, we both, my hubby and I (married as couple #3 on May/17/2004 in Cambridge, MA, if that date tells you something :) didn't want to vote on the touchscreens used here in Broward County, FL (no paper trail, another "Son of a Bush" as Gov., official home of the "Stolen Election 2000"), so we voted absentee ballot a couple of weeks ago.

We run a chain of stores (contract post offices) and we put into the window of a currently empty store, directly in the middle of "we are so rich here, we MUST vote Republican" Pompano Beach the sign you can see here:



Well, we got them into some kind of frenzy, complaining to the USPS, the City, the Sheriff, the Republican Representatives etc., well, didn't help them :)

Anyway, we had three people coming in and telling us that they usually vote alongside their husbands (Rep.), but this time, they would vote DEM. and one said even that she would do that because our poster made her inquire about the relationship between HELLiburton and the current regime. So, I guess we won one over (where is my toaster?!?)

Newbie here, but have been a long-time lurker. My wife and I added 2 for Kerry here in Mississippi this morning. Hard rain at the time, so turn out was a bit slow.

I voted at about 8:30 EST in Fairfield, Connecticut. There was a steady stream of people in and out, but no lines to speak of. The poll workers were asking everyone for ID, which surprised me. I thought you only needed to show ID if you were newly registered, which I'm not.

We use mechanical pull-the-lever type machines here, which is not my preference. I am a dual citizen of Canada and the US; the Canadian system of paper ballots is the most transparent and fraud-proof system and I don't know why it's not generally used in the U.S. Anyway, now I can say I "pulled the lever" for Kerry and have it be literally true!

The polling places in my town were packed every day for more than a week as people cast their votes. It took us about forty minutes to vote. I had the feeling that most of the people in line with me were Democrats. Just a good feeling about the whole thing. Lots of young people, retired people, families with young kids playing in the lobby, plenty of ethnic diversity.

It felt great to vote, just as it does every single election day.

Hubby and I just got back, and my phone bank "shift" doesn't start till 1:00, so I thought I'd come in and pick up my new avatar!

Have a great day, everybody, and GOTV!

Then solicited signatures for some petitions to begin reforming Alabama

and was quite pleasantly surprised to see several "Republicans for Kerry" bumperstickers!!!

The polling place was about 4 times as crowded, as it normally is, for this time of day.
All went smoothly, however we use lever machines having no way to verify our votes.

God bless John Kerry! :loveya: God bless the U.S.A.! :grouphug:

Showed up at 6:50 and got a thumbs up from a dog walker in response to my Kerry-Edwards Help Is On The Way bumper sticker, was 4th in line. By 7:00 there were roughly 20 people in line, and about 30 people in line by the time I left. A poll worker commented it had not been that busy in previous elections. Half the voters were young, under 30, I'd guess.

Great turnout! What a day!

Was there are 7:30, in and out in about 10 mintues. I wasn't expecting lines this morning, (I live in kind of a small town) but we will see how busy it is when hubby goes this afternoon.

Woo-Hoo!!!

.......Savoring the moment...

Since I'm married to a repuke who is just as irresponsible as bush, but has no family to bail him out, I live in a low-class apartment complex. Half the units are empty. Many residents are non-citizen Mexicans, Somalies, and African-Americans. Someone said there are only 200 registered voters in the precinct. I have never voted in this precinct, so I don't know the usual voter turnout. However, they were set up in a very small room, with two electronic voting machines.

It took me only 15 minutes to vote. There were only four other voters there. One voted on a provisional ballot. The other three were handicapped. I was #52 voting at 11:40. One of the handicapped people was brought by a woman who said she had 10 other people to bring after they got off work at 3:00.

After I voted, the light was lit up next to Kerry. I savored the moment, then hit the "Vote" button. I assume it's one more vote for Kerry. Am so mad and disgusted, I also voted straight Democratic ticket. Hope we take the Senate and House, too!

LOL, if your husband is so different from you, why do you not smack him a little with a big John Kerry yard sign?

That must be hell, an irresponsible rep. hubby who (most likely) expects the democratic wife to bail him out when he is in a mess, just to tell her that the mess he just created was just her fault.

That would be the big "D" for me (and the "D" does in this case not stand for Democrat, but a certain legal procedure... :) )

http://www.divorcenet.com/states/ohio

I voted in Cincinnati, Ohio at about 11:30 and was ballot # in the 240's or 250's in my precinct ( usually am around #50 to 60 voting midday) so turnout is high. I'm glad I checked my punch card ballot before turning it in as I had the dreaded "dimpled chad" on my vote for John Kerry! I made sure the chad was punched through and detached before turning the ballot in. All of the other chads were cleanly punched through when I first examined my ballot.

I voted early because I was tired of Bill, Elizabeth, Chris, Jay-Z, and John calling me to remind me to vote. Maybe now they will leave me alone!

Took us a little over an hour--no problem--steadily moving line--
We went early in the a.m. with the pre-work crowd-- much heavier than in 2000 and 2002

NAACP was in force with volunteers etc.

at around 10:00,usually about ten people at that time,today there was about forty maybe fifty.

Just voted at 9am - NO lines. This is in pretty heavy repuke territory. Still - lots of Kerry signs!

Wore my black hoodie, Eminem's MOSH keeps going thru my mind...

Damn - is this what a revolution feels like??

about 8am.

a few people in line in front of me. there were about 5 people manning the registration table, more than i remembered it the last time i voted (1988 for dukakis, i know, i know...). i brought my voter id card, state id card, us passport and most recent phone bill, just in case i was challenged. the ballot was a weird optical scan thing, with an arrow head and arrow tail with white space between them, next to each candidate/proposition. outside the gate there were about three people waving signs. an election protection person stood off about 100 feet away from the election door, which made me feel good, knowing that someone was waiting and watching.
no problems at all.

Long, long line. :)

I voted at 10:30 and there were no lines at all.

I could have walked right up to the sign in table but some tense old man almost knocked me over to get there first. He even forgot to give back the pen.

After he walked away I said "he's a Bushie" and everyone laughed...even the two poll checker guys. It made me feel a little less worried.

LDL

I proudly voted this morning, Nov 2, 2004 in Madison, Wisconsin. My wife and daughters all voted early or absentee.

There were big barrels at the door of the polling place, filling up with donations to a local food bank.

I waited about 20 minutes in a long line of happy, excited people. Some were saying they'd gladly wait all day in the rain this time if they had to.

A couple entered and frowned to see the line stretching way down the hall, about a hundred people waiting before 8am. They hesitated until several in line told them to come on in, the line's moving fast. No surprise that the line moved pretty fast in a ward that can get 60% turnout for an uncontested primary. We're pretty good about voting in Madison.

Saw a guy in a bike helmet give his place in line to an elderly woman, and then walk back to the end of the line wearing a wide, satisfied grin.

Looking at the sample ballots taped along the wall, I remarked how honored and fortunate I feel for the chance to vote for some of the finest people America has to offer. In this crowd, I didn't have to name them: Russ Feingold, Tammy Baldwin, Spencer Black, Fred Risser and of course Kerry/Edwards.

Best of all, there was a young woman, about 19, among several people registering right at the polls, using her passport and a utility bill for ID. It brought tears to my eyes to see her break into a big smile when handed her first ballot ever. Wisconsin is great!

It was the biggest turnout I've seen at my polling place yet. It was the only line I've ever been happy to wait in. The energy is so positive!

I've lived in rural areas of Indiana for going on 18 years now. When I left to vote - I said how one thing about rural areas - is you don't have to wait in line. Well I was wrong today.

I was glad to see so many people out.

It was a bad deal that they chose this time to have the two sections of the township voting in side by side buildings. Ususally - one area votes in a building a couple miles away. So the parking was bad and some people ended up standing in the wrong line. The weather is drizzly and so I called the rest of my family to warn them if the line got any longer - they would need an umbrella - because they would be standing in the rain.

But it's a friendly area and there wasn't any hostility or people challenging voters for no reason or any of that.

We use these dag-burn voting machines that have a "paper guide" that is supposed to line up the names with the arrows - and then you push a button and the selection lights up. But sometimes the names and arrows don't line up well. I hate it. I've used a lot of different systems. I like the optical scan ones the best.

:)

Two or three times the crowd size as usual, central MS.

Mr. Arnheim and I lined up this morning at 7:45 a.m. to cast our votes for Kerry. The line was pretty darn long. The crowds were excited and generally in good spirits. I was so excited!

The weather was a bit misty but it was warm. Not too hot or too cool. Perfect voting weather.

Our polling place had a Kids Vote booth set up for the kids to vote and many did. It was great to see them voting in that "official" Kids Vote 2004 booth!

One B/C twinkie was out canvassing which was really annoying.

Other than her, it was a great experience. The lines were longer than in 2000. I saw quite a few people who hadn't voted before.

Awesome day!

supporters nearby, who were extremely well-informed and interesting, and we had a great time chatting.

One was a 40ish mother of four (hey, they're supposed to be * supporters, aren't they?) and the other was an <30 single guy, who said his friends had already voted earlier in the day and were also Kerry supporters.

A great day in beautiful sunny weather!

on edit--I was voter #432 in the bottom half of the alphabet, so I assume close to 1000 have voted, and there were at least 200 behind me in line. I had tried to vote earlier in the day but the line appeared too long so I came back "mid-morning" when the lines would be relatively short. But they have been long all day!!! The mother told me the public schools let out today so kids could go with their parents to vote and learn.

That I am so proud of all of us. I wish my dad were here today because I would send him a link to this site. If he were alive today, he would be driving all his friends at Holiday Travel Park in Leesburg Florida to the polls. Not only that, he would've convinced them ALL to vote for Kerry. People loved him down there, and he was a HUGE and VERY VOCAL LIBERAL.

got there as soon as the polls opened, 7am. Maybe a 20 minute wait. This is a heavily african-american area, with the usual LA mix of hispanics, asians & middle-aged white guys like myself. No republican challengers, no goofy games with misdirection or anything. A lot of young and first-time voters were there, though, including a number of black males aged late teens to early twenties. Here's hoping they were there to vote democractic!

HUGE turnout! It was the smallest ballot I have ever seen, and the poll workers were amazed at the size of the turnout.

This is a rural area and we have never seen so many people turn out to vote! Several cars had to park some distance away and we had to wait about 35 minutes. The poll workers said it had been that way all day. Also, we had two poll "watchers" there and that has never happened before.

We still have the old fashioned voting machines here ... big metal things ... have to pull the lever with two hands to close the curtains around you ... click those little levers ... open the curtain again ... all with lots of clicks and dings for sound effects. You really feel like you've voted after you vote on one of those old machines!

And we are not done yet. The husband and I are going to Kalamazoo this afternoon to help work the phone banks there!

Carol

I live in a heavily Repug precinct in Colorado Springs, so I take it as a good sign that when I got there two hours after the poll opened, there were two people ahead of me, and I was only the 210th voter.

went smooth, no lines. We use the paper ballot where you blacken the oval. Wore my black hoodie. Will watch returns tonight with my borderline republican son who finally agreed to vote Kerry because of my hysterical sobbing pleas and a promise to leave the country and enter a monastery if * wins again.

I got to my polling place at 6:45 this morning and still waited 30 minutes to vote. I was careful not to wear my K/E buttons or tee-shirt but was surprised to see several people in line did! No one was questioned.

My two sons came with me and gave high fives to all the Kerry supporters. By the time we left, there was a line out the door and around the corner.

I look forward to exhaling tonight....and a peaceful nights rest.

(and NO to the GMA).

Polling place was crowded but things seemed to be running smoothly.

Optical scanners.

Drove by a couple of other polling locations and they were also very crowded. At one location which should have been more rethug, I saw 7-8 Kerry bumperstickers for every * bumpersticker.

Is the worm turning? :toast:

Hour long wait, but most folks were taking it well. I was told that folks were lined up half an hour before the polls even opened.

Lookin' good for democracy and Democrats!

Very organized, well staffed. Kerry signs lining the streets on the way to the polls.

I got to the polls about 7:45 AM. There were more people than I've ever seen there before but no real delays. A Dem and a Moveon volunteer were in the parking lot giving out info.

Nobody wsa giving out Bush/Cheney pamphlets. This is a total reversal of the 2000 election. The mood inside was very jovial, everybody was smiling and making jokes. Even the old ladies who work the polls every election were very pleasant. I've never voted before with so many irrepressibly happy people.

I was relieved that my county still uses the old-fashioned lever voting machines, they are the most accurate of all.

No. 373. Line wasn't long, but we had to wait a good 15-20 minutes because there was a challenge. I think it was a college student. The situation was cleared up and she was allowed to vote. When I left, the line was getting longer. Someone told me when I came that this was the first relative slowdown they'd had since the polls opened. A man behind me in line told me this was the third polling place he'd been to because there was confusion about where he was supposed to vote.

Mr Fuzz and I just got back. Teeny little Town Hall down the road. Not too many people there, though a little more as we were leaving.
Hard to say who was on the side of darkness or light. (Lotta Thug lawnsigns around here, but alotta no signs too.) A couple uncontested R-con slots which we left alone. 2 districts, one machine each. Lever machines.

Upstate New York, Fingerlakes area. Go Kerry/Edwards!!!!! Go Samara Barrend!!!!!!!!! GO ALL DEMS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Small town in a repug county, but lots of K/E signs here. In 2000, I was still living in Idaho and never stood in a line to vote there, so I don't know how this compares...

I walked from my house to the polls this morning. Cars parked for a long ways down the road, but no line. Hm. It was held in the meeting room of a local restaurant. I walked in the door to wall-to-wall people, and a convoluted line that folded back upon itself. Restaurant had free coffee available to all.

My own, unscientific theory is that the people who were grumbling about the long lines were the repugs, and the Dems were smiling and happy to wait as long as it took.

The woman behind me kept muttering comments about taxes -- she made it pretty clear who she was voting for. She said something about the line and I said how nice it was that we were able to wait in line INSIDE, instead of in the cold. She agreed then said, a couple of times, "It's... good... it is, that there's so many people. It's good."

LOL She was really TRYING to convince herself the turnout was good. And I said, "YES, it's WONODERFUL to see so many people voting." BIG SMILE. She looked less than thrilled. Saw a woman with a big */cheney shirt on...but other than that, no one really being partisan, just excited to vote.

I was voter 619 at 9 a.m. I think we have a population of 3000 here. And we did have early voting available last two weeks. I just wanted to vote on election day.

Vote method here is the electornic scan kind -- black marker to fill in the ovals. I have never filled in an oval with more emotion.

Damn. It felt good. Now, off to help with driving...

about 2 weeks ago....i have a very good feeling that kerry will have a decisive victory..i wish i felt as confident about the congressional voting

Way down in Cape May County, NJ- quite the republican stronghold:


I voted at 11:00 am and my district already had over 1/3 of all registered voters accounted for! At 11:00 am!

Never had to wait before- people ahead and behind me.

Somebody was heard to say "Yeah, this is great! We are blowing them away!!"

Dear Husband- registered Repub -voted for KERRY!!!
( and will be changing his affliation next week- didn't want to take a chance of them screwing it up/challenging)

We are VERY excited.

huge crowd (waited about 35 min), and no problems (even though I was the only black person around)

I waited an hour to vote wearing my {Kerry Me} shirt and got complimented
several times on my "fashion sense".

I'm heading back to greet at the polls and I'm bringing cookies,
coffee, bottles of water, and newspapers to read for those waiting in line.
:donut:


Philadelphia Burbs belong to Kerry, Baby! Oh Yeah!
:bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce:

for Kerry here in Illinois.

so excited not only for Kerry but had NO puter for 24 hrs, I hope my problem is fixed.....