yet another post about voting

[buymeaclue.livejournal.com]

This will be my first presidential election in Somerville.  I'll be voting at the Lowell Street Fire Station, getting there about 3:15 or 3:20.  Roughly how much time should I expect to spent standing in line?  Just wondering if I should avoid making plans for the rest of the afternoon...

Thanks!

Comments

[hahathor.livejournal.com]

FWIW, I'm planning to hit the polls at 7 am, and have already re-scheduled a 9 am meeting to 10:30, just in case (it takes me about 20 minutes to get to my office). Last year it took me about an hour to vote, but that was first thing in the morning. My understanding is that it takes longer later in the day, and turn-out is predicted to be very high for this.

[m00n.livejournal.com]

That said, this is definitely not a "swing" area and I've never waited more than a few minutes anywhere in Massachusetts to vote for president.

[jamiesquared.livejournal.com]

I would agree. I havent had to wait in line, ever.

[ron_newman]

I recall waiting over a half hour to vote in the early evening of the November 2004 election, at the Dilboy VFW in Davis Square.

Somerville doesn't have any other contested races besides US Senate, but we do have three very important ballot questions.

[m00n.livejournal.com]

That said, historians believe George W. Bush might go down as the worst president in history (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/02/opinion/02kristof.html) so turnout even in Massachusetts may be unusually high this year. ;-)

[m00n.livejournal.com]

I keep forgetting about that. All of the money devoted to the No on 1 campaign may actually make this a popular vote for people to turn out for.

Vote no on 1!

[teele-sq.livejournal.com]

might?

[icecreamempress.livejournal.com]

There are quite a few awful Presidents.

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

Yeah, neither have I, though I've typically been able to avoid voting in the 7-9am or after-5pm timeslots.

[m00n.livejournal.com]

From a purely logical perspective, it would be unscientific to say it was "definite" before he's even finished his term in office.

[icecreamempress.livejournal.com]

I've voted at the high-traffic times of between 8 and 9 a.m. and between 6 and 8 p.m., and never spent more than 15 minutes in line. In general, both Somerville and Cambridge have small enough ward and precinct units that there is never a giant backup.

[teele-sq.livejournal.com]

or for that matter, before the end of the US presidency. but for right now, he's got my vote.

[jadelennox]

Think about the competition. Whenever else he's done, you have to give George Jr. props for never having initiated the Trail of Tears.

[m00n.livejournal.com]

Ditto.

[obie119.livejournal.com]

I voted at the Powederhouse School in 2004 and I feel like it was 1.5 hours - but maybe I just arrived 1.5 hours late to work?
It was definitely a while, but it felt like a big party - the Sox had just won, and we all thought Kerry would too.

[panda681.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure about the afternoon but I voted here in the am for the primary and the wait was approx. 20min. There is not much room to stand inside so be prepared for that.

I voted in the 2004 presidential election also in the am at another location in Somerville and the wait was about an hour.

[phoenixy.livejournal.com]

3:15? I don't think there will be much of a wait. I was a poll observer in Cambridge in the '04 election from something like 1-3pm and it was basically crickets chirping that whole time and a handful of people trickling in to vote. The big excitement was when a cop went to go drive to some bedridden woman's house to pick up her absentee ballot.

There was a long line in 2004

[nvidia99999.livejournal.com]

But tomorrow I'm taking the day off. Probably, I'll go around 10AM.