- Bearing Drift - https://bearingdrift.com -

Election Day in Virginia: What You Need To Know, Links, Open Thread

UPDATE: Watch election returns at VPAP.gov [1] and the Virginia State Board of Elections. [2]

UPDATE: 7:00: Polls are closed. We will update here throughout the evening.

It’s Election Day 2017 in Virginia. Elections are determined by those who show up so vote! This link will be updated throughout the day so check back for any updates from Bearing Drift’s contributors who are located statewide and other news of the day.

Scroll down for updates from voters around the Commonwealth and observations from news sources.

Share your observations:
What are you seeing? What is turnout in your area? Please share your experiences in the comments.

Where to vote:
Unsure of where your precinct is located? Check the State Board of Elections website at elections.virginia.gov [3].

Poll Hours:
Polls are open from 6:00am until 7:00pm. Voters standing in line when the polls close will be allowed to vote.

On the ballot:
Governor
Lieutenant Governor
Attorney General
House of Delegates Member

Voter ID:
Voter must have photo ID to cast a ballot such as a Virginia driver’s license, state-issued ID cards, U.S. passports, and student ID. For voters without acceptable identification, they may be required to vote by provisional ballots that are counted once the voter’s identification is confirmed.

Control of House of Delegates:
Virginia’s House of Delegates is controlled by the GOP with Republicans holding a 66-34 majority. A pickup of even one seat would form a supermajority (stops governor’s veto). However, it is expected Republicans will lose seats although probably not the 17 needed by Democrats to gain control.

Inauguration:
Saturday, January 13, 2018

Election Day Predictions:
Scott Lee and Norm Leahy share their predictions about Virginia’s election results on The Score [4].

The polls leading into Election Day:

 


Voter observations and updates around Virginia…..

7:00: Polls are closed. We will update here throughout the night but if you want to follow results go to VPAP.org [8] or Virginia State Board of Elections [9].

6:30: Moorefield Precinct in Loudoun County — a friend of Rick Sincere’s was voter number 985 at about 5:30. He says the total voting there in 2013 was 640.

6:00: @VotingGuy reports Bedford County update at 4pm was 33.5% voter turnout, not including absentees.

6:00: Petersburg City reports 35.6% turnout.

5:15: Chesterfield, according to CBS Melissa Hipolit, is at 37% turnout so far not including absentees. She reports that the registrar says it was 48-50% overall four years ago.

5:15: Fairfax City reports voter turnout at almost 48%.

5:15: Matt Talhelm with NBC-29 reports that Charlottesville voter count is 12,102 (42% voter turnout). That exceeds voter totals from past governor races: 209 (10,056) and 2005 (10,104).

5:30: Henrico Melissa Hipolit with CBS at Third Church Precinct on Forest Ave reports 71% voter turnout.

5:00: Fairfax County reports voter turnout at 46%, equal to 2013 governor election level, with another two hours left to vote.

5:00: Falls Church turnout was 57%.

4:00: Richmond Times-Dispatch report says Richmond registrar noted turnout in the city was 37%.

4:00: Charlottesville turnout, as per @ElectProject, at 12,102 voters + 1,302 absentee = 13,404 voted = 45.4% of active registered voters. Exceeds 12,508 for governor in 2013.

2:00 – Chesterfield County: Voter turnout at 2:00 was at 32%.

Oops … sorry! I’ve been on phone calls so will get back to updating voter turnout reports.

4:05: MD Russ wrote, “At noon Lovettsville West had 851 voters, more than they usually get all day in an off year.  This is not good news for Republicans.  Bringing Trump in was probably not a good idea.”

4:00: Rick Sincere says he was voter #947 at Georgetown Precinct in Albemarle County, and added, “There’s been light but steady rain in the Charlottesville area all day. I don’t know if it has affected voter turnout. One of the election officers told me that turnout had been heavy this morning but had slacked off since then. He was expecting more voters after 5 o’clock. I did not have to stand in line at all but there were three or four other voters casting their ballots at the same time as I was.”

Falls Church: From Voting Guy who retweets Dave Bjerke: Turnout at 2:00 is 46.5%.

Caroline County: As of 2:00 reports are that turnout in Caroline appears to be high compared with the total numbers from 2013.

3:00: In Augusta County the rain has lightened a bit and the temp is at a bone-chilling 39 degrees.

Fairfax County: Voter turnout is up 2% over 2013 numbers.

Loudoun County: As of 2:30 voter turnout was at 23%.

Prince William County: at 1:00 they were at 19% turnout.

Arlington: AT noon they had 30% turnout.

Fairfax County: As of 2:00 estimated voter turnout was 30%

Henrico: As of noon they had 30% turnout.

Tazewell: As of 2:00 they had 22% turnout.

Charlottesville: As of 1:00 they had 31% voter turnout.

Fauquier County: At 1:30pm – 25% turnout. Cold and drizzly.

National Election: Northern Virginia voter heard on MSNBC News: “I’m a lifelong Republican but this country needs to get back on track.” She voted for Ralph Northam (D). Do others feel the same?

2:00: Garrett Haake (MSNBC) on Twitter: “Fairfax County says 209,223 votes cast by 2pm. That’s 30.6% of registered voters. Turnout was 46.8% at end of day in 2013. 5 hours left.”

1:00: Report from Mechanicsville that she was voter #777 well before noon at Black Creek Precinct.

12:50: Word received that Alexandria is up by 9,000 votes at noon compared to 4 years ago.

12:15pm: Lynn Mitchell was voter # 382 at Churchville Precinct in Augusta County which is a brisk pace. We have a contested supervisor race that is contributing to the turnout.

11:20: 624 voters at Columbia Precinct in Fluvanna County.

11:00: No wait at Weyres Cave precinct in Augusta County.

10:30: Chesterfield County’s Black Heath precinct — voter #431.

10:30: Ridgeview Precinct in Augusta County had 637 voters.

10:10: Hearing that Prince William County turnout is slightly below 2013 numbers for House and Gillespie, but with Absentee up it may simply be a result of that

9:45: Melissa Kenney, Voter #413 at Columbia Precinct. A local race is helping drive traffic.

9:35: Churchville Precinct in Augusta County has been busy all morning. It’s been pouring rain. Temperature was 49 degrees before sunrise and has been steadily dropping all morning. Currently 42.

9:30: Melissa Kenney: 360 have voted.

9:10: DJ Spiker: Henrico County, Ridgefield Precinct (hard R), 910 voters.

8:30: Melissa Kenney says Shaun was Voter #256.

7:40: Melissa Kenney (Columbia Precinct in Fluvanna County) — “Turnout is brisk. About 25 people in line to vote at 6am, which is comparable to other statewide years.”

7:25: Melissa Kenney (Columbia Precinct in Fluvanna County) — “Poll books down at my precinct. Long lines; some people have left without voting because they have to get to work, school. Local EB folks just arrived with backup equipment, so hopefully we’ll get moving again.”

6am: Polls open.

Virginia’s governor race in the news: