45°
At Long Lots Elementary School, moderators Wally Meyer and John Luscombe said voter turnout today has been slow, but somewhat steady. "As of 3 p.m., we've had 395 voters, not including absentee ballots," said Meyer, the Democratic moderator.In comparison to primary elections in the past, Luscombe, the Republican moderator, said turnout is "about the same."
"You don't see people crowd in lines for these types of primaries," Luscombe said. "The big ones are presidential primaries."
Meyer and Luscombe, who've been at Long Lots since 4:30 this morning, will be at the school until the polls close at 8 p.m., in a not-so-cool gymnasium. "See what we have to put up with for the good of the town," Luscombe joked.
According to Republican Registrar of Voters Judy Raines, in comparison to past years, this primary is actually seeing more voters. "As of 3 p.m., 1,730 voters came out," Raines said. "The voting has held steady throughout the day, and we're cautiously optimistic, as people have until 8 p.m. to vote."
And while Long Lots wasn't overflowing with voters, Raines said it's the second busiest location. Saugatuck Elementary, with a total of 403 voters by 3 p.m., was the busiest location.
For state representative candidate Stephen Rubin, who greeted voters at Long Lots all day, the turnout has been disappointing. "It's been very, very slow," Rubin said. "The quantity of voters coming out is disappointing, but not the quality of the voters; they've been very uplifting."
Rubin, who's running against Nitzy Cohen, said besides the heat, he's feeling confident. "I'm feeling very optimistic," Rubin said. "[My wife] and I feel good. We've done everything we were supposed to do. Anything that could have been done, we did, with our best effort."
Click here to follow Daily Voice Westport and receive free news updates.
