In fact, 8,453 fewer voters turned out at the polls Tuesday than did four years ago when President George W. Bush was reelected.
The number of people who voted early was twice the amount who voted on Election Day.
“That is very unusual,” said County Clerk Shelley Coston. “I think the anticipation of what today would bring brought everybody out early.”
By 10:30 p.m. all the county races had been called and election officials were heading home. During the March primary, there was a four-hour line at closing time at Precinct 405 and the last precinct box came in at 1 a.m.
The most interesting thing about Election Day in Bell County on Tuesday may have been that it was quiet, sometimes too quiet.
At the Bell County Expo Center candidates and elected officials gathered to watch live as the precincts brought in their boxes and the totals were posted live on two large screens.
A large crowd gathered as early voting totals were posted promptly at 7 p.m.
Over the next 2 1/2 hours, 38 precincts brought ballot boxes to the Expo Center but no updates were posted on the large screens because of a computer glitch.
By the time the first update came in at nearly 9:30 p.m. the crowd of about 200 had thinned considerably, at least by half.
The glitch seemed to take much of the excitement out of the event, which traditionally is filled with gasps and clamoring as precincts are updated in real time.
While the atmosphere appeared muted, Coston was still pleased with the efficiency of election officials.
Their ballot projections were right on target. Troy was the only polling location to request more ballots, which each precinct was instructed to do when it had exhausted 50 percent of its supply.
Considering the crowds and the challenges that Bell County had during the primary, things appear to have gone very smoothly on Tuesday.
“I could not be more pleased,” Ms. Coston said.
Arthur Resa, chairman of the Bell County Democratic Party, was also pleased with the results of the election and said any Democratic candidate who received more than 40 percent can be seen as a contender.
He is impressed by the Democratic turnout in this year’s election and the number of straight Democratic tickets in Bell County, which was 21,588.
“Our message is that the Democrats are engaged,” he said. “Being that it’s a red county, we still have some work to do.”
Nancy Boston, chairman of the Republican Party of Bell County, agreed the Democratic vote increased, a fact she attributes to the enthusiasm over the candidates.
Resa believes Obama brought hope to the people for a better economy and that the country will see change with the new president.
Boston said Obama is a good public speaker, but that he is inexperienced compared to McCain.
“I just hope he has the strength to rise to the challenges that we’re facing because they won’t get any easier,” she said.
Esmeralda Garcia used to be a Democrat until she decided that abortion was an important issue for her. She joined the Temple College Republicans and voted for McCain in this election.
Ms. Swinden agrees that a president’s stance on abortion is important when voting.
“Killing our babies - that’s the downfall of a nation,” she said.
Sharon Mitchell was dressed in her Obama hat and Sam Murphey T-shirt at the Expo Center watch party on Tuesday night.
She said Obama is the right person to lead the country, and believes he’ll use experts to help him with issues concerning the economy.
