N-J/Chad Pilster
Cordell Moore, 5, of Daytona Beach, looks down at the near-empty voting booths Sunday at the Dickerson Center in Daytona Beach. Posted on 10/28/2002 5:16:33 AM PST by RightFighter
DAYTONA BEACH -- There was a "get-out-the-vote" rapper, a sidewalk full of campaign workers handing out pamphlets and a gymnasium packed with election volunteers and staff.
| Disappointing turnout N-J/Chad Pilster Cordell Moore, 5, of Daytona Beach, looks down at the near-empty voting booths Sunday at the Dickerson Center in Daytona Beach. |
All that was missing at the Dickerson Center Sunday were voters. Just 82 showed up.
Up to 3,000 were expected to cram the 50 small booths and fill out absentee ballots. The pre-election vote was sponsored by the local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Volusia County Elections Office. Both sides agreed to the event after settling a lawsuit that stemmed from the botched 2000 election.
The NAACP had argued that black voters in several Florida counties, including Volusia, had encountered a disproportionate number of problems.
"It's not what we had hoped for. But maybe those people would not have voted otherwise," said Deanie Lowe, Volusia County Supervisor of Elections, right after the four hours of voting that began at 1 p.m. ended. "And 82 votes can make a difference, given how close some recent elections have been."
Cynthia Slater, president of the Volusia County-Daytona Beach branch of the NAACP, predicted last week that comments Sen. Daryl Jones made publicly would dissuade people from showing up to vote. Jones contended people should be allowed to cast early-vote ballots instead of absentee ballots, which could contain mistakes.
"Maybe people just don't trust the system," said Slater, who added she was satisfied with the turnout. "This was a new project. We just couldn't tell how many were going to show up."
Beverlye Neal, the NAACP's Voter Empowerment Coordinator for Florida, also looked beyond the lower-than-expected turnout.
"I hope this is the beginning. We mobilized because there were problems in the past," she said Sunday. "People here don't have to worry that their votes are not going to be counted. We know they'll be counted."
For Wayne Miller, 42, of Daytona Beach, voting on Sunday was a matter of convenience. He didn't think that dropping his sealed absentee ballot into one of several black boxes would take away from the emotion of Election Day.
"It's still going to be dramatic. I just won't be as rushed to vote that day," he said. "This was a lot easier. It's good for someone who works."
But Candy Gilman, chairwoman of the Volusia County Republican Executive Committee, said she wondered if opening the community center on Sunday afternoon was worth the expense to taxpayers.
"It gives everyone a chance to vote. But they had that chance before," Gilman said, referring to a voter being able to file an absentee ballot. "I just feel bad for the (50 election) workers who had to come out on a Sunday afternoon. And the cost factor. It's more of a drain."
Lowe said the cost was low for going out into the black community and giving voters the chance to vote early.
"We have no figure yet. But it was not an extraordinary cost. The laptop computers (used to verify voter information) are leased through November. And we're working a seven-day week now," she said. "We would have been in the office anyway."
Tony Suarez's campaign handed out more than 500 balloons and 2,500 cardboard fans, a perfect weapon against the 90-degree heat. Suarez, who is running for a Florida Senate seat in District 19 against Gary Siplin, switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican earlier this year.
"I'm liberal, but I believe Suarez is best for us," said Jaklyn Colon, 20, who spent Sunday afternoon tying ribbons to "Suarez for Senate" balloons and passing out campaign literature. "He moved to the Republican party because he believes they really support him."
Click here for the story and a nice picture of a young lady wearing a Jeb! shirt. :-)
Obviously an ommision.
Someone get Jesse and Al down there...
Probably scared everyone away "wit all dat" noise, homey!
Or maybe they remember the way the Dems "dissed" the absentee ballot voters in 2000..... LOL!!!
HaHAHHAHAHAHAHA!
The NAACP, a wholy owned subsidiary of the DNC, is a CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.