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Election Day reports, special Senate version

What are you seeing out there?

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That's at English High in JP. Voted at 7:50, so that's more than a voter per minute.

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Just voted in Somerville and I was the 57th person to vote in my precinct, which if memory serves, me is just about the same number of people who had voted during the Dem Primary in Dec. For whatever that's worth.

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I waited about 15 minutes at the Dante Club in Spring Hill. There was a good turnout and about a line of 15 deep. I was number 118 to vote before 8am.

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MY WIFE and I voted at 7:15 in Watertown. No lines, two people in ahead of us when we arrived, one came as we were leaving. We were pretty early, of course, but if the turnout remains as relatively light in such traditionally heavy Democrat-voting areas, it will not fare well for Coakley.

(We both voted for Kennedy, by the way. No surprise on my part, but MY WIFE - staunch, almost socialist, Democrat - just couldn't put aside the relative hideousness of the other two.)

Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com

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... and there was a steady stream (one couple ahead of us in line for our precinct, four people in line on the other side) at Cuniff School. And Warren Street was entirely parked in -- we ended up a block away instead of parking the the drop-off lane. At least the poll workers recognized WarriorBabyGirl :)

Weirdly enough, NO sign holders, and no signs for any candidates. Never seen that before.

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Voted for Kennedy? Wow, that's like Nader in Florida. This thing could come down to the wire and if Brown wins it could be because of people like you. How's THAT going to sit with you, having SIX years of a teabagger Republican bolstering the Party of No and helping to block legislation YOU wanted? You couldn't just hold your noses for a moment and make the necessary choice?

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It's KENNEDY'S seat, right?

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Six years???
I guess since you're a "Frustrated Virginian" you don't know how long this term will be. They'll be serving out the remainder of Kennedy's term, so about 3 years, not 6 years...

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It was such a civil thread up until this point. I guess every party needs a pooper. You are the pooper.

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Time to go back to Virginia please, you're not helping.

Signed,

Ma progressive

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... that we would otherwise have voted for Coakley. That's quite an assumption.

Look, if you feel that voting for the person who best represents your own feelings is somehow a more reprehensible action than voting for the lesser of two evils (whichever one of these folks that is, and keeping in mind that the lesser of two evils is STILL EVIL) then so be it. I don't.

Personally, I refuse to go through my life having voted for candidates with whom I have fundamental disagreements when another choice was available. You, on the other hand, may be stuck with the prospect of looking in the mirror every morning and having to acknowledge that you trod on your own principles.

I understand pragmatism. Had this been a two-person race (you say it is, but physical proof exists that it isn't) then I would have made a choice between Brown and Coakley. Didn't have to, though, and if that bothers you, well, I guess I did actually get something decent in return for my vote :-)

Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com

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If anything, I'd have to figure that most Kennedy voters would vote for Coakley first. It's hard to say, since libertarians are hard to fit onto a left-right axis, (more than the other parties third parties) but in practice when they do vote for one of the big two, they tend to vote Republican, since taxes and spending tend to be a big issue for them. There are some of a more liberal-tarian persuasion who consider civil liberties and social issues more important, (where Democrats would be more in line with their thinks) but they seem to be a bit rarer.

Of course, there are also people like Suldog's wife, who aren't actually libertarians and just want to protest the two party dichotomy, but one has to figure that most protest voters have at least libertarian sympathies. Voting for someone who you think would be a bad Senator purely to protest someone else who you think would be a bad Senator would be a bit irrational.

Also, the exact argument you made is an argument that libertarians would find appealing. Libertarians want very small government, and many are perfectly willing to accept hopelessly crippled government as the next best thing. There is legislation that libertarians would like to see pass, but the sort of dramatic cuts in the size of government that libertarians aren't something they ought to hold out hope for.

(Suldog makes his own defense that he wouldn't have voted for either party, which is probably true of a lot of libertarians, but ultimately what matters is the net benefit. Some of the people who vote for Kennedy would have voted for either Brown or Coakley in his abscence, and the question is what ratio they would have done it in.)

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Obviously considering the context, but that's a stupid typo I should have noticed.

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Here - Retweeting as fast as I can :-).

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Line out the door at Boston's W3P7 at 7am. Took took 15-20 minutes to get through it, and line was longer when I left. Guess a lot of us getting things done before work.

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Voting this morning a few minutes past 7 am in Ward 22, Precinct 9 had a few people in line in front of me; no line for 22/8. Nothing surprisingly active or quiet for this time of day.

But there is definitely black ice in the parking lot of the Edison K-8 School!

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Line was out the door at 8:15 AM! Of course, the check-in desk is right in front of the door...

Was in line behind about 4-5 people for my precinct in Brighton. Didn't take notice of what the machine said it had read yet because I had a ZipCar about to turn into a pumpkin from the night before at 8:30 AM.

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Kaz, do you vote at the senior center on Washington Street?

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Yeah, I can never remember the district/precinct whatever without looking it up online or having someone else here tell me. Heh.

But it's 91-95 Washington St on the first floor.

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Voted at 91-95 Washington Street. #260. A sole Coakley sign was taped to a street sign outside, which was enough to convince me.

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I just voted at the Taft school on Warren St. around 5pm. I think there were a half-dozen other voters (tops). Two lonely, soaked campaign signs were taped to the fence outside, one each for Coakley and Brown.

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I was voter number 140 at about 8:15. For comparison I looked during the mayoral race and all precincts were voting at a rate of approximately 90 people per hour - but I was working a neighborhood table from 7-8 at the mayor's race and there was no way 140 people showed up by 8:15 - maybe half that. I walked right through but there was a ten-person line building as I left the polls. Busiest I remember in quite some time - even the presidential race.

One lonely Coakley supporter outside the Copley BPL - no Brown supporters - kind of surprising - the local pols get better standouts (which I really don't think make any difference - although I've done it for moral support).

No matter who wins - this race has had a profound impact on the nation's politics. The Dems has better run for the middle or they are in big trouble come November.

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My husband and I were the first two votes cast in our precinct!

We waited from 6:40 a.m. for the polls to open. By 7 a.m., there were enough people standing in the high school foyer that the front door wouldn't close. There were more people in waiting before 7 than I've seen in that high school cafeteria the years since they switched to paper and pen ballots!

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Middle of what?

They have run to the middle. HCR is all but exactly what the GOP had said it supported 10 years ago, only with ectra defiecet reducing measures and they still won't vote for it?

The middle isn't what the GOP screams and crys about. Indys are PO'd because of nothing is getting done that benefits the people. Thats because of the GOP's cynical political ploy. Still, Indys don't care. They are saying Get it done, or well fine someone who will.

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All three precincts at the Copley BPL were in the range of 700 votes as of 4:10 pm - seems about the same as the mayoral race. One troubling anecdote for Coakley fans - ran into a former coworker who said he hasn't voted in years - literally didn't even know how to cast his ballot - said he voted for Brown(saw another one of those this morning but no idea who he voted for). It's going to be an interesting and possibly very long evening as I'm sure nobody called those two guys to see who they were voting for!

Brown's election night gala is at the Park Plaza - there is a 6' 5" guy outside dressed up as Uncle Sam - he looks great - the beard, the hair (and the height) all appear to be real. Walked by about 20 minutes ago and Uncle Sam was on his cell phone getting out the vote!

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It's because I'm at West Roxbury District Court covering the arraignment of the clerk murderer charged with killing that clerk at the JP Tedeschi and not near the comment-approval queue. Get a free account and your note here will go up right away.

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West Roxbury polls were fairly sparse at 7:30 this morning. One couple ahead of me who brought their dog to vote.

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I was at the Kilmer at about 8:10 this morning, and the place was deserted at that particular time, but I was voter #111. At first the voting machine tried to reject my ballot, like a crumbled dollar being declined by a vending machine, but democracy was at stake, so I tried it a second time. I'm relieved to report it accepted my ballot without another worry.

Truly, and through great adversity, I have done my part today.

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I was voter #286 in west Natick at 9am - that is an incredible turnout for a special election on a snowy day. The winner is our right to vote!

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In Cambridge (central square) at city hall there was a steady stream at 8am, resulting in a consistent line of maybe 4 or 5 people. There was no presence by either candidate there.

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Suprised no supporters from either side. I think Brown is going to run away with this one folks...just a feeling.

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Now that you mention it, there's a light pole just about 100 feet from the door that nearly every campaign ties signs too outside of my polling place each election. As of 8:15 AM this morning, neither a Brown nor a Coakley (nor a Kennedy) sign on the pole at all. We usually don't have people standing around pushing a particular candidate, even for city elections, but not even a sign up was a bit sub-par for the course. Maybe it was the weather or something.

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I noticed the same thing when I wandered through at 8am-ish. I mean, NO signs. I was concered that my polling place had moved without telling me! There were just a couple of other voters at the time. With the fill-in-the-dot ballots is there any way to tell which voter-number you are?

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You have to look at the counter on the machine that eats the ballot at the check-out table.

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I'll try to remeber that come next election time. Giving that I tend to vote pre-coffee, however...

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Longer than usual line to get in to vote.
I voted in Dorchester

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when I was there at 8 am, the Taft School seemed busier than usual. No line for 21/8, but usually I hardly see anyone else there at a place that serves several precincts.

Also, I always go through the handicap entrance in the back of the school because its closer to my apartment, so I have no idea if there were any supporters or not. So that's a tip for anyone who gets annoyed by supporters and votes there.

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I voted at the Navarro Community Center at 7:15 a.m., I was the only voter there when I arrived. As I left, there were four people waiting in line. No signs, no volunteers, very quiet...

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Ward 7, Precinct 7

Very light, but got there a little late at 8:00 due to the snow. No Brown supporters, which I found weird, since in the 2008 general there were tons of McCain/Obama supporters. Coakley supporters down at South Station/ One Finacial. Again, no Brownie Teabaggers.

Hope thats a good sign, but Boston isn't where we have to worry IMO.

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Steady flow of people where I voted this morning. It was well organized so the line moved quickly.

On another note, did anyone else stop answering the phone this weekend? After 10+ calls on Sunday we stopped answering and didn't pick it up once while it rang all day yesterday. Scott Brown's campaign gets points for having an actual person call on Sunday, not a robo call, but then he loses points because I let her finish her spiel and then asked a follow up question about what she said and she panicked and hung up on me.

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Didn't have to answer any of the robo-calls, and automatically hit delete when the messages came up on my voice mail.

Of course, the REAL solution to this nonsense is to expand the "do not call" list to political orginizations and charities.

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Only about eight people in line at 8:15 this morning.

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I was number 110 at my precinct, not sure how the other precinct voting there waws doing. No line for either precinct.

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Voted about an hour ago at the Copley Square Library. No lines but the officials said it had been steady since opening.

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St.Nectrios in Rosi Sq was nearly empty at 930, no sign holders to be seen and none at the library either. Dropped my kid off at the Philbrick School which was also devoid of the usual signs of life. What a difference compared to the Mayoral election!

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That is a pretty good turnout - I voted at nearly the same time on primary day and the number was not nearly that high - possibly less than 50, almost certainly under 100. This precinct comprises mostly single family homes (and therefore, lower density), so I was surprised by what was a higher number than I expected this morning. There was also a pretty constant line of 7-10 people waiting to obtain a ballot. As this was after the school day had already begun, these were likely not people dropping off their children.

Outside of the polling place, there were no people urging a vote for one candidate or another, but there were a couple of signs for Coakley (I saw no signs for any other candidate). Looks like this might shape up to be an interesting night.

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I'm fascinated that the ads I see on most sites I visit (boston.com, the text ads here, etc.) are for Scott Brown. I tried to pull up one for Coakley by refreshing several times and going to other pages, but I don't see anything. Anyone else have the same experience?

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Seeing the same ads - even on cnn.com - almost all for Brown.

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Although they changed since yesterday. Yesterday, all of the Coakley banner ads were tying Brown to Bush and Cheney. Today, they all say to vote for Coakley, but with the same font/style/backgrounds.

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Prob a large last min ad buy.

But it's not surprising. Coakleys tech campaign was almost nonexistent. The state party couldn’t have picked a lamer candidate.

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saw *one* ad for Scott Brown, but otherwise here, boston.com, etc. have been all Martha Coakley.

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I was voter #114 in my traditionally low-voter ward-precinct 21-6 when I voted around 10am at Jackson-Mann. This is not a high number but it is higher than the #56 during the Democratic primary (needless to say, it is a heavily Democratic area which is why I live there). Go Martha!

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Brookline Heath School was pretty dead at 730am. One Coakley sign, but thats it

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So at my polling place in liberal JP, there was no line, in fact I think I was one of 3 or 4 who were voting when I was there. No campaign workers at all, and only Coakley signs up on the fences outside Boston English. One surprise, Joe Kennedy is listed as a "Liberty" candidate...I didn't realize that was a recognized party, and I thought he'd be listed as "Independent."

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I was voter 310 at the Beethoven, Ward 20/Precinct 15 at around 11. I think that's about twice as many as during the primary at about the same time. The poll workers said they've had a steady stream of voters all morning.

There were 2 signs for Brown & 2 for Coakley and no campaign workers.

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I was voter #66 in Ward 19, Precinct 8 at 8:00 a.m. Steady flow of voters (less than 2008, but steady). Large Coakley sign attached to fence. No Brown signs. No volunteers for either side.

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Sign holders are generally there to keep their jobs or contracts - quid pro quo. In a Senate election, there's not many jobs involved. All sign holding is local.

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The Democrats are doing door-to-door canvassing for Coakley in JP, and they're targeting reliable Dem voters. It's a sign that they put together a strong get-out-the-vote effort in a very short time.

Voter turnout was high at the Smith House near Stony Brook T stop.

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I was at the Cathedral Gymnasium in the South End around noon (I forget the Ward No.). One of the precincts had around 8 people in line. Otherwise the place was empty. The poll workers were off chatting with each other.

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Is anyone having trouble getting on boston.com?

It might be overloaded with election hits

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At my polling place around noon, Teele Square area, I was voter 478. One polling place worker coming to vote on her break mentioned they had 500 in the space of three hours and wouldn't be surprised if they cracked 1500.

Not good news for Brown.

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I'm north of the city in Tewksbury and voted about 1 pm. What I noticed at my own polling location and several others en route there and to work was the preponderance of Brown signs. Not a single Coakley sign at my polling place nor at 3 others I passed in Billerica. Plenty of Brown signs. What gives, Martha?

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North of the city Tewksbury and Billerica I've seen 0 Coakley signs and supporters at the polling location where I voted and several others I passed on the way to work. What gives, Martha? Have you written off the Merrimack Valley?

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The worker at my Dedham voting site said they had been busy all day. One Brown sign holder outside, and one for Brown at another polling place I passed soon after. Dedham also has two Prop 2 1/2 overrides on the ballot.

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Sarah Bourne and her husband have been taking their son with them to vote since he was an infant. Today was no different. But this time, he got his own ballot.

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Getting on plane now at Denver, Boston bound. We will be voting in South Boston and North End fingers crossed. (For Coakley.)

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I was the 161st voter at about 1:30pm, Ward 11 Precinct 1. There was one man in line behind me, nobody in front of me. No electioneering. One sign for Coakley.

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Vote count is 625 at the Bowditch School (Ward 19, Precinct 6) in JP, as of 3:15 PM.

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Just voted at the Conley in Roslindale. I was voter 522. When I voted in November, a couple hours later, I was 300-something.

Not a single poll worker or sign, though, which was weird.

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...having their people going door-to-door, and perhaps foresaking locations with predictable results?

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... in such a tight race is that all available personnel with own transportation are being pressed into service delivering elderly/infirm (or otherwise reluctant to travel in the poor weather) voters to the polls.

Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com

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At Holy Name in West Roxbury (for Coakley). When I was taking the bus in this morning there were a ton of Coakley signs by the Greek church, and only one Brown sign.

but it was homemade
and *that's* what has me worried.

I don't think you'll see annnnny homemade Coakley signs anywhere.

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I was voter 907 - constant stream going in and out. Matt O'Malley holding a Coakley sign and one man holding a Brown sign. Maura Hennigan was at Forest Hills handing out Coakley literature. God bless anyone for holding campaign signs.

As for myself, I voted Khazei in the primary (was really tied between he and Capuano), Coakley tonight. I'd love for the Mass Democratic party to stay the hell out of primaries going forward.

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"I'd love for the Mass Democratic party to stay the hell out of primaries going forward."

You're second person on Uhub I've heard say the Mass Democratic party influenced the democratic party by favoring Coakley. How do yo know that? How did they do it?

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Small line at 8:30 am. Got checked out as usual by the cop who doesn't understand alphabetizing thus looks at every page to find each voter's address. He even shuts the book after each voter, so he has to totally start over at the front when the next voter is at the same address as the last one.

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About 340 voters in my precinct voted before me at 3:00PM: I have have no info to gauge the turnout. It was quiet inside, just me a couple of voters and poll workers.

No signs, no one standing around. This race will be one with the GOTV effort. Campaign workers are driving voters and phone banking to GOTV.

(I'm curious how the UHub readers voted since their favored candidate in the primary was not on the ballot in the special election. What percentage of the Capuano, Khazie and Pagluica voters voted today? Did they all vote Coakley?)

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I voted at Patrick Lyndon too (20-12) and there were 465 votes at around 4:30. I don't usually vote at this time, so I don't know if that's high turnout or not, but I think it is.

I voted for Khazei during the primary and (relunctantly) voted for Coakley now.

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I voted for Khazei in the primary (real life and the UHub poll) and Coakley in the booth today. Surprise, right?

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Voter #502 at around 5:30. For that precinct, it's pretty good. I wish people took every election this seriously.

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City Hall 30 people in line when I started, 30 in line when I was done.

Funny thing is there are more people registered for my building who no longer live
here then there are currently living here. 6 resident, probably 8-10 registered
who don't live here. We don't have a huge turn over, but I am the only one
to be here before mid 2005 and last to move in was late 2007.
Anyway, I always scan the list so I can smugly say
that I was the only one to vote from my building. I was a little surpised
when I saw several check marks for my building. The people doing the checking
are pretty efficient today so I wasn't able to see much, but I swear I saw a
check mark next to the name of someone who moved out in 2005. Perhaps he
just wanted to use his registration for this election. But I don't think
so. Don't know He had lost his job and seemed to be interested in living
anywhere but here when I talked to him just before he left. Like I said I had
a very short time to scan the list so I could have misinterpreted.

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So, where are the parties, tonight?

Scott Brown's party is in the suburbs, I thought. What about Madame Coakley?

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The clip on "Greater Boston" looked like it was in the Castle.

Coakley's event (not listed on her website, GRRRR) seems to be at the Sheraton Boston.

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Steady trickle of voters.
No signs or supporters.

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My wife voted at the Lower Mills library around 9am. I breezed through around noon. Both of us saw no line, hardly anybody there, and no sign of the usual suspects outside the polls--hell, I saw more Coakley signs in November.

Well, at least if Brown wins, nobody can blame me for not doing my part. My last act of civic duty as a Massachusettsian.

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