A few minutes observation indicates Sanders is like a traffic cop directing all of the activities around the room. Sanders says she started in 2007 volunteering as an election worker and when early voting came on-line she noticed a dip in voting in-person. “And of course very few people showed up in 2020 because of COVID. But today there was a crowd lined up at 6 a.m. when the polls opened. Today’s turnout has been steady, not people coming in waves before and after work like it used to be.” She adds, “Things have been really good here with the wait at most 20 minutes.”

Danny Debner, an election official, reports a voter count of 725 at 10 a.m. at this location, Arlington’s Central Library. 

The voting booths are full at Central Library mid-morning but with a smooth progression of voters and little wait. 

Election officers waiting for next voters at Central Library polling place.

Meet the Voters

Gerren Sayco says his main issue is immigration policy. “I come from a third generation of Asian-Americans and see how easy it is these days for migrants to get across the border and to get taxpayer money for housing and cash. It’s a good thing to have but for me, whose relatives came here the right way and it took a long time, I don’t think it’s fair. It’s a slap in the face to my parents and grandparents. I voted for Trump.”

Frank Fowler says the economy is his primary issue. “Inflation seems to be getting better; you have to work to get it down, and time needs to pass. I voted Libertarian because I believe in a free-market economy. I have a beef with the two-party system. I’m suffering fatigue; I can’t morally vote for either the Republican or Democratic Party.”

Daniel Alther says his main issue is, “Trump says he wants to be a dictator. I voted for Kamala.”

Maddie Thomas and James Chung are standing outside the Central Library conducting an Asian-American exit poll to determine whether there have been any language access barriers to voting. Chung says this is a national organization because various states have voter suppression and, “We want to make sure to bring this issue to the forefront and to raise it to the local election board if it happens.” So far this morning they have seen no issues in Arlington.