Officials with Virginia’s Department of Elections say it’s been a smooth election day so far.
There have been some minor and routine issues with voting machines. No reports of voter intimidation.
Reporters Mallory Noe-Payne and Michael Pope found lines to be be short, and voters moving quickly through the polls.
Richmond voter Jason Echols celebrated his birthday Tuesday by taking the day off and heading to his polling place. “That’s what we're supposed to do," Echols noted. "It’s part of the world. It’s part of life. If you want to deal with what’s in the office now and deal with what’s going on in the world then stay at home. If not you come out here and vote, you make a change.”
Echols is confident his vote, and every vote, will count.
Poll worker Walter Fenner also believes that. Wearing his mask and face shield he says it’s important to him to help the process go smoothly. A self described people-person, Fenner was the greeter for the small steady stream of voters at his precinct. “I think more so now than ever people don’t have faith in politics anymore, and we need to restore that faith and trust in politicians.”
Election Day used to be a big event, a day when most voters headed to their local precincts to cast ballots. This year it's not an event at all. It's more like a deadline.
Tony Bowman waited until Tuesday assuming the lines would be shorter at his precinct, Claremont Elementary School in Fairfax County. "I decided to go right when the polls opened assuming that since so many people voted early that there'd be a short line if any line at all at 6 am. And I got there, and the line was already out the building around the parking lot and a ton of people were already there. So all my theories foiled again," Bowman joked.
A few miles away in Alexandria, Ryan Shucard walked right up to the voting booth at Lyles Crouch Elementary School with no waiting and no lines at all. "I live right down the street, so the polling place is only a block away and I've always voted on Election Day and the experience here has been good every single election I've voted in."
Many Election Day voters say they've always voted at their precincts on Election Day, and they have no plans on changing. They say they like the social aspect of it, greeting the other voters and the poll workers and even the party volunteers handing out sample ballots.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
