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Democratic Primary early voting turnout throughout Texas has been extremely high, but Democratic Primary voting in Republican stronghold counties has been astonishing!!Democratic Primary voting in Collin County Texas, one of the deepest red of all Republican counties in the United States, exceeds Republican Primary Voting by thirty percent in each of the first three days of early voting. In stark contrast, Republican ballot totals typically far exceed Democratic ballot totals in Collin County Texas.
In Collin County, 175 Democratic Primary votes had been cast by the end of the first day of early voting in 2004. By the end of the first day of 2008 early voting 2,474 Democratic Primary ballots had been cast. Thats more than 80 percent of the Party’s entire 2004 primary two-week early voter total, when 2,879 people cast Democratic ballots. While smaller, Tuesday’s Republican primary voting was still a substantial 25 percent of the party’s 2004 primary two week early vote total of 6,679 ballots cast.
Other North Texas Republican heavy counties have also experienced a dramatic turnabout in Republican vs Democratic ballot totals. When the polling places closed at 5 p.m. Tuesday in GOP bastion Tarrant County, 8,338 residents had cast ballots vs. the 2004 first early voting day total of 980, mostly Republican, ballots cast. Within Tuesday’s 8,338 total voters number, 5,733 ballots had been cast in the Democrat primary and only 2,605 ballots had been cast in the Republican primary. In Denton County, day one early voting totals for the 2004 Democratic Primary registered an insipid 151 total ballots. This year, a total of 1,832 Democratic ballots were cast in Denton County on the first day of early voting.
While it is true that larger numbers of true blue Texas Democrats are turning out to vote in these Republican bastion counties, it is also a fact that large numbers of Republicans are “crossing over” to cast ballots in the Democratic Primary under the semi-open primary voting rules that Texas allows. (I’ll write more on Texas Republican to Democratic Primary crossover voting motivations at a later time… Hint, they most likely will not be voting Democratic in November…)
By late Tuesday afternoon County Election Administrators, who control and fund early election staffing and voting equipment allocation at each polling place, were already authorizing Election Judges across Texas, including Collin County, to call in extra poll workers and extra voting equipment. (Collin County, which is home to Premier Election Solutions, better known by its former name of Diebold Election Systems, maker of the Diebold Touch Screen Voting Machine, exclusively uses the company’s e-Voting Machines.) By the start of the second day of early voting most early vote polling stations were adequately staffed and equipped to handle the unusually large numbers of primary voters waiting in line to vote.
UNFORTUNATELY, FOR DEMOCRATIC PARTY PRIMARY VOTERS, who wait until March 4th to vote, the lines at many Democratic Precinct Polling Places in Republican heavy counties may be frustratingly long.
WHY will the Democratic Primary voting lines be frustratingly long on March 4th? In Texas, each party must fund the cost of their party's Primary Election on the actual Election Day, this year March 4th. Primary allocations were made for each political party in every Texas County based on the 2004 voting statistics for each party. Allocation determinations were made by the Texas Secretary of State, Republican Phil Wilson. Accordingly, the Democratic Party office in each Texas County hired poll workers and “rented” voting equipment from their county government’s Election Administrator office to staff and equip each Democratic Precinct Polling Place on March 4th.
Unfortunately, the 2004 Democratic voting statistics in Republican heavy Texas counties has left most Democratic Primary Precinct Polling places in Republican counties with a skeleton crew of just one Election Clerk, in addition to one Election and Alternate Judge, and only two voting booths. Democratic Party Officials in these Republican heavy counties have stretched their meager budgets to increase staffing and equipment were they can, but, so far their options have been limited!!
Based on the unusually heavy early Democratic Primary voting numbers, so far, Democratic Party Official in these Republican heavy counties, in coordination with State of Texas Democratic Party Officials, have requested additional allocations from the Texas Secretary of State for Election Day.
As of early Friday morning Democratic Party Officials in these Republican heavy counties have seen no help coming from their Republican controlled County Election Administrator’s offices or the Republican controlled Texas Secretary of State office.
The Message to Texas Voters in both Parties: Get out and vote early before the Early Voting Polling Places close at 7P.M. Friday February 29th.
