AUBURN - When Ann Landers arrived Tuesday morning at the polling place where she worked, something was waiting for her that she had never seen. Though the polls were opening at noon, eager voters were sitting in their cars by 11:30 a.m. outside of East Middle School in Auburn.
Sam Tenney / The Citizen
Cayuga County Board of Elections employee Dawn Conway monitors voting booths as residents cast their ballots in the presidential primaries at Auburn City Hall on Tuesday evening.
Cayuga County Board of Elections employee Dawn Conway monitors voting booths as residents cast their ballots in the presidential primaries at Auburn City Hall on Tuesday evening.
“They were lined up,” said Landers, who has worked at polls during elections for more than 30 years. “I have never, ever seen a primary like this. It is very exciting.”
With the presidential nomination for both the Democratic and Republican parties still wide open, millions of people in 24 states voted Tuesday in primary elections. Cayuga County residents joined the party, with reportedly high turnout and fewer polls than usual leading to some long lines for voters who showed up early.
Backups of up to 45 minutes had been reported early in the day at some locations in Auburn, including East Middle School, Hoopes Park and Booker T. Washington Center, according to the county Board of Elections. And some of those crowds were compounded by some confusion over assigned polling places.
Because of a change in the ballot format, the elections board was forced to consolidate its polling places for Tuesday's primary. The largest change occurred in Auburn, where the usual number of 21 polling locations was condensed to six. And while registered voters were notified by mail of the changes, elections officials still dealt with confused voters showing up to their usual voting location.
“So far, there has been huge voter turnout, which is good news,” said Board of Elections Democratic Commissioner Dennis Sedor on Tuesday afternoon. “But it is also going to cause some confusion and backup, and we expected that.”
Joe Leogrande, 54, showed up to Hoopes Park only to find that he was assigned to vote at East Middle School. Leogrande said he was not upset about the change, though he wondered about the reasoning behind the location.
“I live right near (the park), but I had to come all the way over here,” Leogrande said. “It is a little bit of an inconvenience, but it is no big deal.”
Leogrande said there were more people than he expected when he showed up to EMS at approximately 2 p.m. About 20 voters were waiting in line at the time. With so much local and national interest, he said he wanted to wait for a while after the polls opened to beat the early rush.
“Oh, I've been following (this election) closely in the papers and on the news,” Leogrande said. “My daughter turns 18 next week, and she is excited to vote in the next general election.”
Auburn resident Joan Schuster did not have a problem finding her polling location. It was the same place she always votes - Auburn City Hall. Poll workers at city hall reported that they had seen a steady stream throughout the day, though there was a lull when Schuster stopped to cast her vote at around 5:45 p.m.
Schuster said she wishes more people would vote, even in elections with high turnout.
“I always want to see more people taking responsibility,” she said.
Sedor said that, despite some delays and confusion, things pretty much ran as expected Tuesday. Voters were patient and understanding, and some even called the elections board throughout the day and offered suggestions to help the process.
“We're pleased with the big turnout, and people have been great about it,” Sedor said. “The right to vote is an important thing, and people are willing to wait in line a while for it.”
Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net.
Unofficial Cayuga County Results
Democratic Primary
30 of 30 (100%) machines reporting
(65 total districts)
President of the United States Vote for 1
Hillary Clinton 4,270
Barack Obama 1,531
John Edwards 89
Bill Richardson 51
Dennis J. Kucinich 46
Joe Biden 22
Congressional district races
25 of 25 (100%) machines reporting
(58 total districts)
Delegate to National Convention, District 24
Vote for 5
Kim K. Muller (CLINTON) 2,628
RoAnn M. Destito (CLINTON) 2,627
Martin J. Mack (CLINTON) 2,543
Ashok Malhotra (CLINTON) 2,364
Sugwon Kang (CLINTON) 2,290
Constance S. Lewis (OBAMA) 1,028
Lynne J. Tillotson (OBAMA) 983
George J. Evans (OBAMA) 938
John J. Rydzeski, Jr. (OBAMA) 837
Alternate Delegate to National Convention
Vote for 1
Lori Gardner (CLINTON) 2,051
Rachel E. Dunifon (OBAMA) 847
Delegate to National Convention, District 25
5 of 5 (100%) machines reporting (10 total districts)
Vote for 5
Francine Turner (CLINTON) 222
Denise A. Williams-Harris (CLINTON) 220
Kenneth Brynien (CLINTON) 217
Bethaida Gonzalez (CLINTON) 216
King S. Davis (CLINTON) 210
Lisa J. Daly (OBAMA) 112
Mary A. Nelson (OBAMA) 101
Kenneth Preston (OBAMA) 97
Ralph D. Jones (OBAMA) 97
Thelma D. Trotty-Selzer (OBAMA) 95
Republican Primary
30 of 30 (100%) machines reporting
(65 total districts)
President of the United States Vote for 1
John McCain 2,601
Mitt Romney 1,054
Mike Huckabee 776
Ron Paul 301
Rudy Giuliani 103
With the presidential nomination for both the Democratic and Republican parties still wide open, millions of people in 24 states voted Tuesday in primary elections. Cayuga County residents joined the party, with reportedly high turnout and fewer polls than usual leading to some long lines for voters who showed up early.
Backups of up to 45 minutes had been reported early in the day at some locations in Auburn, including East Middle School, Hoopes Park and Booker T. Washington Center, according to the county Board of Elections. And some of those crowds were compounded by some confusion over assigned polling places.
Because of a change in the ballot format, the elections board was forced to consolidate its polling places for Tuesday's primary. The largest change occurred in Auburn, where the usual number of 21 polling locations was condensed to six. And while registered voters were notified by mail of the changes, elections officials still dealt with confused voters showing up to their usual voting location.
“So far, there has been huge voter turnout, which is good news,” said Board of Elections Democratic Commissioner Dennis Sedor on Tuesday afternoon. “But it is also going to cause some confusion and backup, and we expected that.”
Joe Leogrande, 54, showed up to Hoopes Park only to find that he was assigned to vote at East Middle School. Leogrande said he was not upset about the change, though he wondered about the reasoning behind the location.
“I live right near (the park), but I had to come all the way over here,” Leogrande said. “It is a little bit of an inconvenience, but it is no big deal.”
Leogrande said there were more people than he expected when he showed up to EMS at approximately 2 p.m. About 20 voters were waiting in line at the time. With so much local and national interest, he said he wanted to wait for a while after the polls opened to beat the early rush.
“Oh, I've been following (this election) closely in the papers and on the news,” Leogrande said. “My daughter turns 18 next week, and she is excited to vote in the next general election.”
Auburn resident Joan Schuster did not have a problem finding her polling location. It was the same place she always votes - Auburn City Hall. Poll workers at city hall reported that they had seen a steady stream throughout the day, though there was a lull when Schuster stopped to cast her vote at around 5:45 p.m.
Schuster said she wishes more people would vote, even in elections with high turnout.
“I always want to see more people taking responsibility,” she said.
Sedor said that, despite some delays and confusion, things pretty much ran as expected Tuesday. Voters were patient and understanding, and some even called the elections board throughout the day and offered suggestions to help the process.
“We're pleased with the big turnout, and people have been great about it,” Sedor said. “The right to vote is an important thing, and people are willing to wait in line a while for it.”
Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net.
Unofficial Cayuga County Results
Democratic Primary
30 of 30 (100%) machines reporting
(65 total districts)
President of the United States Vote for 1
Hillary Clinton 4,270
Barack Obama 1,531
John Edwards 89
Bill Richardson 51
Dennis J. Kucinich 46
Joe Biden 22
Congressional district races
25 of 25 (100%) machines reporting
(58 total districts)
Delegate to National Convention, District 24
Vote for 5
Kim K. Muller (CLINTON) 2,628
RoAnn M. Destito (CLINTON) 2,627
Martin J. Mack (CLINTON) 2,543
Ashok Malhotra (CLINTON) 2,364
Sugwon Kang (CLINTON) 2,290
Constance S. Lewis (OBAMA) 1,028
Lynne J. Tillotson (OBAMA) 983
George J. Evans (OBAMA) 938
John J. Rydzeski, Jr. (OBAMA) 837
Alternate Delegate to National Convention
Vote for 1
Lori Gardner (CLINTON) 2,051
Rachel E. Dunifon (OBAMA) 847
Delegate to National Convention, District 25
5 of 5 (100%) machines reporting (10 total districts)
Vote for 5
Francine Turner (CLINTON) 222
Denise A. Williams-Harris (CLINTON) 220
Kenneth Brynien (CLINTON) 217
Bethaida Gonzalez (CLINTON) 216
King S. Davis (CLINTON) 210
Lisa J. Daly (OBAMA) 112
Mary A. Nelson (OBAMA) 101
Kenneth Preston (OBAMA) 97
Ralph D. Jones (OBAMA) 97
Thelma D. Trotty-Selzer (OBAMA) 95
Republican Primary
30 of 30 (100%) machines reporting
(65 total districts)
President of the United States Vote for 1
John McCain 2,601
Mitt Romney 1,054
Mike Huckabee 776
Ron Paul 301
Rudy Giuliani 103