A Historic Election 11.4.08 - One Voter’s Views & Images

As of this writing, the polls in New York have just closed and handed Barack Obama 31 Electoral College votes.   

When I last checked the polling place before heading home, the lines still snaked around the gymnasium where I had voted earlier this morning.  

Earlier this morning, I set out to vote and decided to bring a small camera along to snap some images around my polling place and other polling sites.   After all, I was voting in a district that routinely handled previous presidential and local elections quite smoothly. Further, the district’s population is a cross-section of working people, professionals, media types, and local politicians.  What could possibly go wrong and there shouldn’t be any line.

En route, I saw some of my neighbors who voted at 6 AM warned me that they had waited for 2-1/2 hours as they passed me on their way home. 

By the time I entered a large gymnasium, there were people in different queues as poll workers were directing a congested human traffic.   I found my district queue with sullen looking people snaking around the gym.  I asked some friendly looking voters on another queue why their line was shorter and mine was much longer?  They smiled a tad too happy and told me that my district’s voting machine broke down sometime before 8 AM and my district had only one book to verify the voters’ credentials.  Their district had alphabetized their books and separated the voters according to last names, from A to L and M to Z.   Apparently, the folks in queue overheard my conversation became instantly angry and started to demand poll workers about this snafu and who was in charge?    

I noticed a local politician and asked him about the Board of Election bringing in an extra machine.  His reply was that he had been trying to fix this problem since 7:20 AM. He didn’t think the Board of Election would bring another machine.  The voters’ turnout was unprecedented all around the city and throughout the state of New York. 

While I was standing in line, people told me that CNN had even reported about the lines and snafus in our district.  That bit of news didn't impress anyone in line who became grumpier by the seconds.  I briefly wondered how each of them would have handled an independent voter and convinced that person to vote for Barack Obama.  All we had to do this morning was to wait and vote.  

Finally, 2-3/4 hours later, I was delighted to have pulled the lever and voted for Barack Obama and local legislators.  

I’ve captured some images (with permission) from my voting experience.  The images were voters in queue, a councilwoman, a memorable ballot, and signs.   The polling place is considered as temporary Federal property therefore, permission must be granted before anyone can photograph inside the polling place.