Primary Election Day

A big thank you to all of you that voted yesterday. Voter turn out was .2% higher than the previous primary. Considering the weather, it was pretty decent.

I spent the day at the Rising Sun Banquet Hall sign waving for Senator Harris, standing next to Robert Hodge. It was the strangest sight to pull into the parking with the normal 50+ yard signs decorating your approach and see only one poll worker. As we all know from previous elections, we would normally see 20+ poll workers waving as you would enter. This scene repeated itself at numerous polling locations throughout the county.

Robert and I shuffled back and forth on our feet trying to keep warm throughout the day. At one point, I ran to a local hardware store and picked up those chemical feet and hand warmers to help defrost our fingers and toes. Robert and I debated about the value of sign waving at the polls and finally decided that it was going to work that day because the voters would vote for the owners of our signs out of pity for two fools that were standing in the cold or because of our dedication to those that we were supporting. After getting pelted with rain, snow and sleet late in the afternoon, I called it quits and went home around dinner time.

Early last week, I made a commitment to be at my normal spot on election night and that was to be the central location that the poll workers would called in the results for the Republican candidates after the polls closed. My job was to help tally the results on an excel spreadsheet. My wife questioned my decision to leave the house that night because of the ice covered roads. I told her that I had to go because of the commitments that I had made. I thought that I heard something about be committed as I was leaving.

I think that the second biggest surprise of the evening after the polls being extend was Pamela Bailey winning. I think that the majority of us had already decided that John Bunnell had this race all wrapped us. Shows us that we shouldn't assume anything.

Final thoughts - the next presidential primary election, whoever the decision makers are for the dates of the primary, they need to tied down to a stake in the ground and hosed down. Maybe next time they would think about holding the primary in a warmer month.