Columbus voters swarm poll on first day of early voting. Here’s why they braved long line
Hundreds of Columbus residents rushed to the early voting poll on the first day of advance voting, willing to wait as long as it took to get their ballots cast.
By day’s end, 1,338 Columbus residents had voted in person at Columbus City Services Center off Macon Road, the first of five early voting polls that will open here before the Nov. 3 General Election. On the first day of advance voting in the last presidential election in 2016, 1,748 ballots were cast, according to Ledger-Enquirer reports.
At around 11 a.m. Monday, Neresia Johnson stood behind about 500 people in a line that wrapped around the services center from the voters’ side door entrance and around the corner to the backside of the city swim center next door.
And she was thrilled to be there, she said, and to see so many others. “This brought joy to me,” the 65-year-old added, gesturing toward all who stood in front of her.
She would stand in line all day, if that’s what it took, she said. “We stand in line for everything,” she said, so why not stand in line to vote, when it’s so important?
She had brought water, an umbrella and comfortable shoes. She said she was motivated partly to support the Black Lives Matter social justice movement, and to right what she saw as a divided country.
A few dozen people ahead of her, Alex Shockley, 18, a Columbus State University student, was waiting with his parents to vote for the first time in his life.
He lives in a dorm, and wasn’t prepared to get a mail-in ballot, so he wanted vote early to ensure his vote would be counted, he said. His mother Christine, 44, said she was with him partly because like many locals, she had Columbus Day off.
Asked if any political issue drove him to vote, Alex Shockley said: “For me mainly it’s the division of the country in recent years…. It’s just been a major divide between people. And also a big issue I see is gun rights, and how vastly different each side has their opinions on. That’s what I want to see addressed.”
He said he thought firearms purchases should have some restrictions, such as prohibiting felons from having them, but others should be able to get weapons. “I want it to be a bit more difficult to get a gun. It is a bit too easy, but I do feel you should be able to get more or less what you want.”
Asked about the turnout, his mother said, “I think it’s amazing. I would gladly wait in a three-hour line, just because I love seeing that this many people came out.”
Mother, daughter continue tradition
Among those leaving the poll were Shirley Edwards, 63, who had just voted with her mother, Frances Woodall, 80.
Edwards is an Army veteran who decided to stay in Columbus after being stationed at Fort Benning. Her mother later moved down from Philadelphia to be near her daughter, they said.
Because Edwards has a handicap and her mother is older than 75, they were able to move to the front of the line and vote in about 10 minutes, Edwards said.
Why was she eager to vote?
“Because I feel that there’s the wrong person in office, and does a lot of lying, and cheats,” she said.
Did she want to name that person?
“You don’t have to,” her mother said, chuckling.
“It’s DJT,” she said, referring to the president.
She said she and her mother make a habit of voting early together. “Every chance we get, we like to do it early,” she said.
“Get it over with,” her mother added.
Voters wanting to get it over with started lining up outside the poll at 6 a.m. Monday, said Jeanette James of the Muscogee County Board of Elections and Registration.
She said the long lines were comparable to the last day of early voting, in a presidential election year, not the first day.
“This is the first time I’ve ever seen it on the first day of early voting,” she said.
She said that from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., voters who are disabled or age 75 or older can move to the front of the line, where a Muscogee sheriff’s deputy stood at the door. Periodically poll workers were walking the line looking for those voters, to inform them they could move to the front, she said.
Most people seemed prepared to wait, having brought supplies with them.
“I haven’t heard anybody complaining,” she said. “They’re just having a jolly good time.”
Early voting sites
The poll is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day until Oct. 30, including weekends, but more advance polls will open before then, according to this schedule:
James said voters looking for a less busy time to vote early should consider coming on a Sunday.
Voters should remember to bring a government-issued photo ID when they go to the polls.
This story was originally published October 12, 2020 at 1:16 PM.