ROCKINGHAM — All across Richmond County, from Mount Gilead to Cordova, local residents were stopping by their designated polling places to step into the booth and cast their ballots. This year, those voting were required to show some form of photo ID.
Debbie Quick, chief judge at the Mineral Springs No. 1 precinct in Ellerbe, said there had been a steady crowd from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. By 12:55, 148 voters had cast their ballots.
Ten additional people came through Ellerbe Town Hall within the next half-hour, including Clay Thomas, who had a little bit of trouble.
Thomas said he had registered at the license plate office, but his name wasn’t in the book when he checked in to vote.
Ray Lindsey had to fill out a provisional ballot, since he hadn’t updated his address since moving to Ellerbe from Rockingham.
Up the road in Norman, 84 ballots had been cast by 2 p.m.
“The ID thing has gone well, better than expected,” said Marvin Powell, chief judge at the Mineral Springs No. 2 precinct in Norman.
Steeles No. 1 precinct in Mangum had 23 ballots at 3:25 p.m. when three more voters walked in the door.
By 4:15, the machine read 55 for the Black Jack No. 1 precinct. Chief Judge Richard Tyson said he was expecting a rush between 5 and the time the polls closed at 7:30, adding, “That’s normal.”
Across the county in Hoffman, 149 ballots had been cast by 5:10 p.m.
Abby McDonald, chief judge of the Beaver Dam No. 1 precinct, said there had been a few lulls throughout the day, but that turnout had been steady.
“Some people were not in the book, so they voted provisional,” she said. At least two of them had registered at the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles office, McDonald added.
Just before 6 p.m., with every booth filled and people filing through the doors, the Marks Creek No. 1 precinct had a total of 565 ballots cast.
Chief Judge Kendra Faries said voting had run smooth and “gone very well” at her precinct.
“Nobody’s complained about ID,” she said. “They have it ready when they walk in the door. They want to show it to us.”
Helping out at the precinct were Kim Gales and Kayla Snead from the early college. At that time of the afternoon, the teens were helping voters push their ballots through the machine and handing out “I Voted” stickers.
Meanwhile, in the Rockingham No. 3 precinct at Roberdell United Methodist Church, Chief Judge Toni Maples said 116 ballots had been cast as of 2 p.m.
The Rockingham No. 2 precinct held at Leath Memorial Library in downtown Rockingham saw the biggest numbers of the afternoon as 606 people stepped into the booth.
“We’re expecting at least a couple more hundred before the night’s over,” said judge Billy Moss.
Outside of Browder Park, Rockingham’s No. 1 precinct, County Commissioner Jimmy Capps, who is running for re-election, had been campaigning outside all day. He said the turnout was a little slower than he imagined it would’ve been.
Nonetheless, as of 3:30 p.m., 435 ballots had been turned in, including several by curbside, according to judge Denise Pittman.
The East Rockingham Senior Center, serving as the polling place for the Wolf Pit No. 1 precinct, was sitting at 182 cast ballots as of 4 in the afternoon.
As the day went by, at the Cordova School, 170 voters from the Wolf Pit No. 3 precinct were accounted for by 4:30, according to Chief Judge Debbie Clark.
Reach reporter Matt Harrelson at 910-817-2674, follow him on Twitter @mattyharrelson and listen to him at 12:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays on G-104.3 FM.