Voted Yesterday. . .

We have early voting here in Texas at limited locations, that is not at all polling locations.  Ours was the county courthouse and they had about 25 or so voting machines in operation.  The voting procedure is the same as it one is voting on the basic election day, show your registration card, a proper ID and sign the register.  Then you are given an "approval slip" and you go over to the clerk who issues you a number.

The number has to be entered in the voting machine and allows you to cast your ballot.  You can vote strait ticket or individuals.  In my case I chose individuals and the machine led me through the extensive ballot.  The clerks, sheriff, constable, judges as well as our famous national candidates.  I did it that way because I purposely did not vote for one candidate.  So I had to go through the whole enchilada.  My wife, on the other hand, voted the strait ticket.  Even so I finished before her because she had to figure out what was going first.

What impressed me was there was a very long line of voters.  I had never seen that many before and the last 13 years of voting here.  And the clerk handing out the control numbers commented she had not seen that number either before.  In simple terms there must have been 40 or 50 voters in the line waiting their turn to vote.  On our way out, we noted the basic length of line had not changed, so more and more folks were pouring to vote.

This was not the first day of voting, it was the second day.  We could tell things were booming because is was virtually impossible to get a car parking slot outside the building.  We had to wait for one and when we left there was someone waiting for our slot.  The people were exercising the right to vote!

I do not know it that is  good omen or a bad omen.  I do know we are in the middle of the bible belt and the county is largely Republican.  There are not a lot of Democrats left and the ballot had very few Democrats listed for local elected positions.  In the national area all four national candidates were listed and one was able to select the one of his or her choice. 

My sense of things is that Trump was getting most of the votes here.  I do know in national elections, the candidates do get their fair share so to speak.  While being heavily Republican, the voters often deviate from the party of their choice.  So it could go either way but not likely a win for the Democratic party.

People were very sober in the line, little chit chat going on, they were intent to vote.  Again I do not know how to sense that as good or bad.  But they were packing them in.