No snags this time

Residents were eager to weigh in on national issues, such as terrorism, the war and civil rights; some voiced concern about the state’s electronic elections system

Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2006

Click here to enlarge this photo Naomi Brookner⁄The Gazette Democratic gubernatorial candidate Martin O’Malley greets supporters as he escorts his mother, Barbara O’Malley, to her polling place at Fallsmead Elementary School in Rockville Tuesday morning. The race was too close to call at The Gazette’s deadline.

That comes in sharp contrast to the delays and snafus that plagued the September primary. This time around, the election appeared to proceed smoothly.

At Bannockburn Elementary School in Bethesda, election judge Calvin Franklin faced an unexpected issue. A black and white dog squeezed past several dozen voters waiting at the door at 8 a.m.

The excited mutt drew laughs and pats on the head as it roamed through the crowded room, dodging away from Franklin before finally rolling on its back.

‘‘That’s the worst problem we’ve had all day,” Franklin said after escorting the canine out a side door.

Most voters reported few problems as they went to cast their ballots on an overcast fall day.

For some voters, the focus was the congressional races — a stand-in, they said, for a referendum on President Bush’s policies.

‘‘We always vote, but we made a special effort to retire a few Bush fans,” said Al Mertig, 69, of Boyds, after voting at the Monocacy Elementary School near Barnesville.

‘‘It’s very important we vote now because of the war on terrorism,” said Mary Hoffacker, 63, of Barnesville, who voted for the Republican candidates.

Some were surprised at how many people were voting.

Thomas Proctor, 75, of Barnesville, a Democratic precinct chairman, said that in normal election years there would be a rush in the morning, a slight uptick at lunchtime and another rush in the evening.

‘‘But it’s been a steady run,” said Proctor, who kept a counter in his hand to keep track of the people entering Monocacy Elementary.

At Seneca Valley High School in Germantown, 60 people were waiting when the doors to the polls opened, said assistant chief election judge George Smith. By noon, 522 people had cast their ballots, surpassing the total on primary day.

In the lobby of the Leisure World clubhouse, the state’s most populous precinct, 10 people waited to check in with the election judges around 9 a.m.

Earlier in the morning, people commented on the short line, many recalling years past when it stretched out the door.

Ruth Carlson, an election judge, said that the first voter was in and out in less than 15 minutes, and that 300 voters had cast their ballots in the first hour.

‘‘It’s beautiful,” she said. ‘‘Everyone is in good humor, and we’ve had no problems.”

‘‘Things ran much smoother than in the past,” Leisure World resident Jerry Strumpf said. ‘‘There’s always a long line so my wife didn’t come because she thought we’d wait forever. It was great this time.”

Strumpf said he planned to vote for Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. until Monday night.

‘‘O’Malley was here [Monday] and my wife’s friend came to see him,” he said, referring to Democrat Martin O’Malley. ‘‘She called my wife and talked all about him, so I did vote for him.”

Leisure World resident Bernard Schneider had requested an absentee ballot because he thought he would be out of town on Tuesday. The ballot never arrived, and when he called to inquire, he said, he was told that the elections board didn’t have record of his request.

‘‘When he showed up here to vote, they told him that they had him down for an absentee ballot,” said his wife, Delores. Bernard Schneider was able to vote using a provisional paper ballot.

Marilyn Teitelbaum, wife of retiring Sen. Leonard H. Teitelbaum (D-Dist. 19) of Leisure World, said the turnout was lower than usual at Leisure World because the Maryland Democratic Club had encouraged voters to use absentee ballots.

Teitelbaum was campaigning Tuesday for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Benjamin L. Cardin. ‘‘It’s much more fun to do this when it is not your husband,” she said.

At Germantown’s Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, Terry Briscoe, 30, who works two jobs to support his pregnant wife and two daughters, said he opposed Republican Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele’s bid for U.S. Senate.

‘‘I’m a working man, so I need to watch out for my interests,” he said. ‘‘I think it’s time to set things right at both the state and federal level.”

Back at Leisure World, Leon Boulavsky, 77, said that he was frustrated by the telephone calls from candidates.

‘‘I have already made up my mind as to who to vote for,” he said. ‘‘Those calls are a nuisance, but I guess they can be a reminder if you are forgetful. I just want a change for Maryland. We are Republicans.”

Anne Wheelock, 74, who also lives at Leisure World, knew who she was voting for days ago.

‘‘I am doing my part this year to get rid of those dreadful Republicans who are wrecking our country. They’ve done terrible things, and I just hope for the better,” she said. ‘‘My No. 1 concern is the war in Iraq, my No. 2 concern is the war in Iraq, and my No. 3 concern is the war in Iraq.”

Outside the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission’s service center in Gaithersburg, several voters said the process went smoothly, but they were concerned that there was no way to verify their votes.

‘‘If you have your vote on paper, you can see it. There is a way to verify how you voted,” said John Hudson, a Gaithersburg resident. ‘‘With this method, you don’t really know what happens to your vote after you make it. The possibility of electronic tampering exists.”

Things did not run as smoothly at the Lake Marion Community Center in Montgomery Village where some voters waited for more than an hour in line because election workers had difficulty with the electronic poll books. Some people left, but most remained.

At Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, 20 people waited in line around 9:30 a.m. Aside from the wait, the election judges said voting was going smoothly.

But some people were not happy.

Bernice Sandler of Chevy Chase said she had a number of concerns that influenced her voting decisions this election. ‘‘I have all kinds of concerns in terms of Iraq, the Senate race is very important to me and civil rights in terms of this administration,” she said.

Jessie Jackson said the war was the major issue on her mind. ‘‘I think the troops should come home,” she said. ‘‘We’ve been there long enough. There’s been enough death.”

A light turnout was reported early Tuesday at Flower Hill Elementary in Gaithersburg.

‘‘You never know, maybe this is the result of the absentee ballots,” said Mumin Barre, a Democratic precinct chairman. ‘‘Or maybe when the word gets out that everything is running smoothly, people will come to vote later.”

Early voters at Brown Station Elementary in Gaithersburg waited in short lines. Some who normally don’t vote said the contentious races for governor and U.S. senator brought them out.

‘‘We just need a change,” said Rosemary Boateng of Gaithersburg. ‘‘We need a change for our community, and this is the way to do it.”

The handful of voters filing through the doors of the Jewish Community Center in Rockville the moment the polls opened at 7 a.m. were intent on getting to work after voting.

‘‘I’m so pleased and surprised to see everything functioning so smoothly today,” said Glenda Nelson, 42. ‘‘But my biggest concern is not having a paper trail. I wish I could leave here with a receipt showing how I voted.”

Staff Writers Janel Davis, Peggy Vaughn, Stephanie Siegel, Jaime Ciavarra, Terri Hogan, Robert Rand, Georgia MacDonald, Kevin Shay and Melissa Chadwick contributed to this report.