New Haven Independent

Long lines of voters appeared at Branford’s five voting district buildings shortly after 5:30 a.m., before the sun rose. Doors opened at 6 a.m. at the Mary T. Murphy School on Brushy Plain Road; voters from District 4 stood in line for an hour. “When we opened at 6 a.m. there were 300 people on line and we did 900 people in the first two hours,” one poll watcher said.

Poll workers in the First District reported that several seniors accidentally filled in two bubbles on the ballot for U.S. Rep. DeLauro, because her name appeared twice: Once on the Democatic line, once on the Working Families party line. In that case, the machine rejected the ballots and spit them back out. Poll workers then explained to the voters what the problem was, and the voters got a chance to redo their ballots directly.

DeLauro got each of those votes in the end — once.

District 4, with 6,100 votes, is the largest. By 9 a.m. about 1,200 voters had cast a ballot and by 12:30, the number had doubled. By 5:30 p.m. the number was approaching 4,000. A number of people who came early to vote, had left in order to go to work and they may have decided not to return after work was over.

Traffic was congested and the police were doing their best, given traffic and parking conditions.

Lt. Geoffrey Morgan, one of several officers outside the Murphy School, told the Eagle: “The turnout exceeds the capacity for parking. Nonetheless this school is the best of all of our options in the district. But it is a long walk for older people once inside the school, from the front door to the actual voting room.” Handicapped people were later told to use a rear entrance so they could avoid the walk.

“Democracy is working,” said State Sen. Ed Meyer, who is seeking a third term in office and was standing outside the school. “I’ve never seen a line like this,” he said, standing outside the school with his supporters dressed in election art. “The mood is upbeat,” Meyer said. And so was he.

“I’m voting for you,” said one voter.

His opponent, Republican Ryan Suerth, arrived a few hours later. He, too, was upbeat though he recognizes his party affiliation might be an issue in traditionally Democratic Branford.

“It’s a good day for America,” Suerth said. “Good Luck, Ryan,” said one voter walking into the school. Suerth talked about his television commercials that have aired on MSNBC. “I put it on MSNBC not Fox news,” he said. “The people who watch Fox News are already voting for me. Why would I put it there?”

“I did television because I thought I could reach more people that way,” he said. Meyer did not, relying instead on informative mailings sent to voters.

At the Community House, some blocks away, voters from District 1 were filing in. There were long lines; the parking lot was packed.

As I am walking in, Pete Lombard, who hosts his own television show on Branford Cable Television (BCTV), and his children, Robert 11 and Morgan 9, are walking out.

Lombard tells the Eagle that he allowed his children to make the presidential pick for the family. “It’s soon to be their world,” he said. He wouldn’t give away the choice. But we did a little digging and asked Morgan to whisper the answer in our ear. “Obama,” she said smiling.

He said his children had reasoned decisions. Robert Lombard explained: “Every child should have health insurance.” That was at the top of his list. Next, he said, Obama “would discontinue the war.” As far as the vice-presidential election, he said “Biden has lots and lots of experience and Palin has very little.” Then he summed it up: “We don’t want another Bush.” Might we commemorate this day with a photo, we asked. They agreed.

The polling for the First District, which has a total of 4,620 voters, took place in the gym. By 11:30 a.m., 1,611 of them had voted. This district has a small section of voters who elect an assemblywoman from the 98th district, in this case Pat Widlitz, who is running unopposed on the Democratic line. Initially voters for the 98th were getting in the wrong line, heading for the gym line. Those on the gym line were given ballots with all the same names save one. Here voters were asked to vote for Lonnie Reed, who is also running unopposed and who will represent the 102nd District. This district represents the vast majority of Branford voters in the legislature.

Reed, a three-term member of the Representative Town Committee, (RTM) visited all the Branford districts, as did Meyer and Suerth. “This feels like a red, white and blue all-American Day,” she told the Eagle as she greeted voters approaching Orchard House, the voting place for District 3 in Short Beach.

This is her first run for statewide office and she said when she looked down on the ballot and for the first time saw her name not far from the names of Barack Obama and Joe Biden, she was deeply moved. “It had such an impact. I was enormously proud that I was part of a history-making day in a very specific way.”

Like the other districts, long-time poll watchers were amazed by the turn-out. By 9.a.m, 460 residents had voted in Short Beach, a lot for a district with a total of 2,057 voters. “I’ve never seen anything like it all,” said Peter Jackson, who stood outside wearing signs, while his dog, Stan, mostly slept. By 11:30 a.m. the number had risen to 677 and the lines were still snaking around outside the building.

More than 300 voters had shown up at Orchard House by 5:30 a.m. They arrived in darkness anticipating long lines and knowing they needed to get to work by 8 or 9 a.m. “This is incredible,” one old-timer said, as the buses carrying the handicapped and the elderly arrived about 11 a.m.

Meanwhile, it’s noon at the 4th district at Mary Murphy school and Pam Fowler, a Republican RTM member, is carrying a sign in support of Suerth. Reed, who sits across from Fowler at the RTM, held a sign for Meyer. Politics aside, they are friends. The Eagle asked the two to pose for a photo as they had done a year ago, when Reed was backing Unk DaRos for First Selectman and Fowler was backing John Opie.

“It’s a tradition,” Fowler said. “Yes, it is a tradition,” Reed replied. Every year. ” Tradition…” they sang.
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