Dallas County records a record number of people showing up at poll booths to cast their votes. Now, due to social distancing guidelines, some may be tempted to argue that the lines simply appear longer, but campaign worker Barry Jacobs told NBCDFW,
“I’ve been in Dallas since 2006. I’ve been involved in every election since then. I have never seen anything close to this. We’re talking three and four times as long a line as I’ve ever seen before,”
He continues
““This is just fantastic for our democracy. I could not be more happy about what we are seeing,”
According to Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins, 59,809 early votes were cast on Tuesday. NBC reports,
“59,809 in-person early ballots were cast on Tuesday, which broke the previous one-day record of 58,775 set in 2016. There are 61 early voting lotions in Dallas County where any registered voter can cast their ballot.
For a more detailed breakdown of the numbers, see the document here.
Despite the turnout, Day 1 of early voting was not without its own challenges.
“At the Duncanville Library, voters waited around two hours to cast ballots early in the day, but no one was complaining . . . At the Samuell Grand Recreation Center in East Dallas, voters said an equipment problem caused two-hour waits early in the day, but the problem was solved by lunchtime and the wait was down to an hour.”
Read the full story here. The article also reminds voters of a few guidelines. The use of cellphones and other electronic devices is prohibited within the voting booths, so if you need a list, or notes of any kind, use paper. In an effort to minimize the use of mail for mail-in ballots, Dallas County has designated a mail-in drop off location at 1520 Round Table Drive. Curbside voting is another alternative available at early voting polling stations. Should you need assistance arranging this, call 214-819-6338 to set this up.
