Tell me about your voting experience
Posted by txnewsprincess@reddit | Dallas | View on Reddit | 221 comments
Hey everyone! I'm an editor at D Magazine, and I'll be reporting on voting today and the results. I'm going to be out at several polling locations, and we also have a couple of other editors and a photographer hitting a few. However, obviously, we won't be able to hit every location or be there all day.
So please let me know about your voting experiences. Was your experience relatively quick and painless, or was there a line? How long was the line? Why was it important for you to vote today?
RadWaste505@reddit
I too voted early. About a ten minute wait. Brewery across street from voting location. Vote and the walk across street to wash the bile out of my throat
Sensitive_Hotel7478@reddit
voted in south oakcliff at a community center pretty secure no long line at all so many new voters tho many had been given a round of applause for it asked a few most voted for kamala, it was pretty easy to understand
Tyforde6@reddit
I was unable to vote in Dallas county.
I moved 40 miles from Fort Worth to downtown Dallas in September, changed my address on my voters registration in October. Upon doing this it took 30 days for my new registration to become valid and it voided my old registration in Tarrant County. Leaving me unable to vote in either Dallas or Tarrant county even on a federal or state level.
All of this new after waiting in line at the Oaklawn Public library for 45 minutes. Pretty frustrating.
TaurusDH@reddit
It was pretty quick and painless. I'm new from California, so it was nice that they checked ID and actually cared. Back home. They leave the book wide open so you can be whoever you want.
I was a little caught off guard by the fact that Wilkerson, a local representative, was actively electioneering in the parking lot. I didn't like the way that she talked of school district support, which should be agnostic. Apparently if she's behind the line of demarcation it's all good. That was a totally new experience for me.
Fearless_Royal3766@reddit
I voted last night right after I got out of work at around 5:30, and I was in line for about an hour and a half (almost 2) at my local Elementary school. My husband went to the local High school (around the same time, around 5:30ish) and it only took him about 20 minutes. š
Illogical-Pizza@reddit
Also not your target demographic, but we voted last week at Marsh Lane Baptist Church, there was a line, but I was carrying my ~9 month old and the poll worker let me cut in line š
Appreciate that guy, and sorry to the folks I cut in front of! At least I already had my voting cheat sheet and voted quickly.
_Blitzer@reddit
For what it's worth, since I also go to marsh lane by default - if there's a line, take the short drive north and go to Brookhaven. The room / experience is SO SO much better. Line is faster moving, the space where you wait in line isn't anywhere near as claustrophobic.
And there's way less of a "there's probably black mold behind the walls" vibe.
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
I was going to vote there Friday night but went to Royal Lane Baptist after I saw the wait was 45 minutes.
devish@reddit
Voted Dallas county sachse (a week early) and they let several people vote with political hats/shirts. They like to enforce the cellphone rule that's for sure.
tom_sawyer_mom@reddit
Voted in Plano 2 weeks ago - used my passport and voting card for ID since I was waiting on my new drivers license to arrive. Only waiting 10 mins which was great because my 2 year old was running away from me in line š A sweet friend held him for me so I could vote. It was pretty easy and fast. First time voter.
cvsmith122@reddit
Super quick and painless, walked right in on Nov 1st they checked my ID and o voted total time like 5 minutes
Lord-Cuervo@reddit
Took me 30 minutes to get a provisional vote cast, since I was registered in Houston. Poll worker was nice but frustrated at the machines taking forever to progress.
ChaosCron1@reddit
While I was waiting in line, a truck drove passed us yelling "WHITE POWER".
Empress_Clementine@reddit
I voted last Sunday at my local rec center. Five minutes in and out and I was back out running other errands. I drove by a nearby library the day before and it looked like there was a line, so I kept on driving. Itās so easy here with the easy voting thereās no need to ever wait in a line.
RealMrPlastic@reddit
Hey, Iāve volunteered at the polls three other times for elections, including the last week of October and again today. Usually, there are around 15 to 20 people handling voter registration, with 5 to 8 people troubleshooting and directing voters to available machines. One person oversees the final scanner, guiding voters on how to submit their Scantron and where to pick up their āI Votedā sticker.
This time, I noticed they only trained volunteers for their specific role. For instance, if you were at the registration desk, you were only trained on registration tasks. If you were responsible for guiding voters to open voting stations, especially helping seniors, you only learned that role. They didnāt train us on anything outside our assigned responsibilities, keeping everything fairly compartmentalized.
Around 8:30 AM, we began noticing a slowdown in our computers when processing the Scantrons, with each ballot taking about a minute instead of the usual 5-10 seconds. At about 8:35 AM, a lady went outside to let people know about the delay. By 8:45 AM, things were back to normal, though Iām not sure what resolved the issue.
Another difference was the cell phone policy. In previous elections, we had to keep our phones off, but this time, poll workers were allowed to have their phones on, which was a noticeable change.
Overall, the atmosphere felt different and more subdued this time. What stood out was the lack of younger voters. I saw very few people in their late teens or early 20sāprobably only about 15% of the voters in line were in that age range. Most of the voters were older, primarily 35, 40, or even 50+. The majority of people I registered were in that older age group. The usual excitement and energy were missing, with fewer people talking or interacting, making this election feel much quieter and less joyful.
Ravioverlord@reddit
That is so odd how different it was for you. This was my first time as a clerk and there were zero issues with internet/scanning, we could not have our phones and had to cover any cameras even for the security in the building, and with two judges they each had 4 clerks with their party. So 10 people total. It wasn't super busy at any point after the rush at open, but we had over 300 votes.
We also had at least 50% first time voters. Of all age ranges. Oh and we didn't have set tasks, everyone rotated as we wanted and were trained on each position at the training course in person or online. Then given a refresher by those who had worked as clerks before.
I wonder if it depends more on the judge &/or county? I was in Plano and it was very chill and chatty and friendly.
GlassMostlyRelevant@reddit
Voted last week just before work. No wait, in and out. It took longer to find parking.
SolemnSoliloquy@reddit
voted today at local elementary school this morning - in the parking lot at 6:58, was 10th in line at 7:00, back in my car at 7:15
plumbtastic76@reddit
I vote and Live in Lancaster (south Dallas county). I voted early on Thursday evening. Pretty long lines. Line went fast. All the poll workers were great!
jessy_pooh@reddit
For the most part- in and out within 10 minutes. No line whatsoever.
HOWEVER. When they scanned my DL, another persons name popped up. Opposite sex of me. No clue who the other person is. They tried manually searching me up using my DOB and name. Nothing appeared. I had my voters registration card, the lady called someone else, Linda, Linda was able to see me registered and good to go. They scan my DL again, still popping up the other persons name. They call Linda again. Linda says āOH! Looks like sheās not completed registration, like it never went through even though she got her card in the mail. Iāll push it through.ā Linda works some kind of magic. The lady helping me says āoh yeah itās totally normal for some peoples registration to be not fully completed.ā I make a comment about having my registration card for 3 weeks so why would it take so long and she says idk. Lindaās magic is done. They scan my DL again, and boom my name pops up! I get to vote!
If there wasnāt this issue. Iād have been outta there in 10 minutes. Instead it took about 30 minutes going back and forth between myself, the lady and Linda on the phone.
Pleasant-Condition85@reddit
Early voted a few weeks ago. I voted in Collin county at the library. The line was pretty long and it took roughly 30-35 minutes to vote. I came in with my ID and voter card and was questioned by a poll worker. Despite having the same info on both forms, I was grilled and had to state my address twice, even though I had a photo ID with my address.
Later I received an explanation from the poll worker that there was a surplus of fraud going on and you could never be sure. I asked the woman for her name, since she wasnāt wearing a badge, but refused to give it. After that it was smooth sailing, I went to a booth and cast my vote.
turdybirdee655@reddit
Brought my three kids with me to vote in Dallas county around 11 am. Zero line, so painless!
chickenkenders@reddit
Drama at the pirrung elementary school with some kids coming in and causing chaos - pm me
DarqSol@reddit
Went to vote this morning in Farmers Branch, short line. Surprise, not on the roll to vote. Even the judge who was preparing my ballot was surprised as I'd brought my voter registration card on top of my ID.
h4iL0@reddit
This happened to me too! I tried in Wilmer. Stumped the crap out of everyone. Iām not sure what they did to fix it but it got fixed for me!
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
Did they give you a provisional ballot?
DarqSol@reddit
They offered one as well as the opportunity to fill out a form to fix the issue with another poll attendant calling in to fix issues so I could do a standard ballot. I took the option of having the issue fixed and filling out a standard ballot.
patmorgan235@reddit
Good decision. Standard ballots are better, only vote a provisional ballot as a last resort.
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
Oh good!
h4iL0@reddit
They couldnāt locate me by my VUID number, name, birthday, address, nothing. They turned me away the first time claiming I didnāt register in time. (I did). I checked vote.gov & called the voter registration number, they all said I was active and eligible to vote. Went back, still couldnāt be found. Stumped the judge and inspector. They called the voter registration, not totally sure but after about 15 mins on the phone they had my ballot ready & I voted the same as everyone from there on out. So strange!
Artistic-Coffee1946@reddit
Very easy and quick process in Dallas County
Common_cents_4_sale@reddit
I voted today while it was still raining this morning. There was no line. Few systeml issues caused delay registering, but in and out in 15 minutes.
Grand-Astronaut-5814@reddit
Voted this evening at a garland elementary school. Maybe 3-4 people in line waiting inside to begin voting procedure. Was in and out in less than 15 minutes. No issues.
comandante-marcos@reddit
I got confused by all the yard signs, and I think I may have voted for a realtor
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
I hope Christmas lights wins.
comandante-marcos@reddit
IĀ got confused by all the yard signs, and I think I may have voted for a realtor
No-Pin1011@reddit
Walked in at 9:00AM, no line, had my credentials checked and a ballot in a minute or two, and then slogged through that behemoth. So many judges and propositions. Was out by 9:15-9:20.
RockyNetania@reddit
early voted in Garland, there was a bit of a line. after I submitted my physical ballot the machine said there was a jam or an error, a couple people before me also experienced the same issue. it said my voted was still counted but it definitely made me nervous. whole thing including the hiccups with the machine took less than 15 mins tho. it was important to me to vote because as a young adult i lost some rights that i wrongly assumed i would never lose. as a teenager i saw a lot of my friends worry about being deported after losing daca. if they can rescind things like that i fear that they will continue to take our rights away if we donāt vote.
mnlvilla@reddit
Less than ten WITH ID CHECK voted and got out! .
Few_Advertising9494@reddit
Voted at 11 am. Thanks to all the people who voted early, there was no line. Checked the map, almost all locations were green. Just a few locations, such as the main library, were red.
UDMN@reddit
Voted at Oak Cliff Gov Center last week, I waited 15 seconds. Room was full and people coming and going constantly.
GladVeterinarian5120@reddit
Voted around 10:30. A short line. Very easy and pleasant.
lovemomshmu@reddit
No line, in and out- greater north area
upliftinglitter@reddit
Voted last week and it was an easy process.
BikerCow@reddit
I voted first day, over at the E. Jefferson courthouse. Had to wait two hours but I had water and snacks in my pack and played games on my iPad to pass the time. I was told theyād had earlier tech issues that caused the backup.
pepsiblast08@reddit
State of TX basically told me I'm not allowed to vote.
noncongruent@reddit
Felon? Not a legal resident of Texas? Under 18? Not a citizen of the USA? There are several legitimate reasons why someone would not be able to vote.
pepsiblast08@reddit
None of the above. Currently out of state for the unforeseeable future. I filed for absentee and was told that if I'm in the country still, it's not a valid reason so they denied my absentee request.
monkeyman80@reddit
If you're out of state living/working you're likely a resident of that other state unless college/military. Possibly wanting to return to Texas doesn't make you a resident. Depends on your new state but you could establish voting rights in typically 30-60 days or less.
pepsiblast08@reddit
I've been in and out of a handful of states for work. Right now, there's no word on if the job is bringing me back to TX or if it's planting me in another state. Not much I can do about that.
noncongruent@reddit
You should have been approved for a mail ballot, it's based on county not state or country. The denial was illegal. The DMN and others are looking for stories related to this election, I'd contact them via the links they've posted here.
Maker_Of_Tar@reddit
Early vote on 10/31 in far north Dallas. No line at all. Very pleasant.
NoPianist25@reddit
Had an awesome time early voting down town at the court house! Literally in and out in 10 minutes.
1L7nn@reddit
Voted at Lake Highlands Elementary around lunch time. Quick and painless, no drama. Waited a grand total of maybe 2 minutes to get my ballot. My only complaint is that I wish they had a little more signage around the property telling people which entrance to go to, but that's not a big deal. My parents, on the other hand, did early voting at Audelia Road Library last week and had to wait about an hour in line!
badlyagingmillenial@reddit
Check this thread, Dallas is having MAJOR issues with verifying IDs due to internet problems.
Deadlystrain@reddit
I went to Lochwood Public Library during early voting and I had no issue. But I do remember them saying that the system was slow in checking my DL but it didn't seem like it took long when she said it.
eventualist@reddit
Sounds like weāre gonna need a few more voting days!
noncongruent@reddit
We need more early voting days, for sure, but Election Day is written into the Constitution so adding days afterward will require an Amendment.
patmorgan235@reddit
We have 2 weeks of early voting. I could see an argument for extending early voting through the staturday/Sunday before election day, but Texas has one of the longest early voting periods.
noncongruent@reddit
I think that extending it through the weekend before election day would create logistical issues with getting set up for election day because the list of election day polling places isn't always exactly the same as early voting polling places. We extended to three weeks for COVID and that was really successful, and before Abbott canceled them Harris County had great success with late night/overnight voting hours during early voting.
Note that this year early voting hours during the first week were typically limited to 8-5, so that ruled out many people from being able to vote because that's what their job hours are. What is certain is that more early voting hours are better, and limiting early voting hours is the opposite. I'll also note that several states have mail voting available to all and mail ballots can be dropped in the mail or a secure ballot box for much longer than the two weeks immediately before election day. Also, many states allow registering to vote much closer to election day than Texas, and several states allow registering as late as the day of the election. This would be almost trivially easy to do in Texas, but we're lagging behind in that aspect of voting.
Texas should be bending over backwards to make sure that every citizen that wants to vote is able to vote, without throwing a bunch of rakes in front of them. Texas is regarded as being one of the harder states to vote in by people who analyze these things, and instead of making excuses we should be making fixes. Other states have figured it out, including California which has, what, nearly a third more people than we do? BTW, CA has universal mail voting, you can drop your ballot off in person, in a drop box, or mail it in, or you can vote in person if you want. They also have drop boxes located everywhere, whereas in Texas there's just one drop box per county. Not a problem in Loving County where the population is 43, but a big problem in Harris County where the population is nearly 5 million.
Funny how that works.
patmorgan235@reddit
Not really early voting sites are usually a sub-set of election day polling locations. Early voting equipment can't be used on election day according to state law so equipment at those locations have to be swapped out, but there's usually on the order of 10x the number of election day locations.
This was the case pre COVID-19 in most counties. I do agree 7am-7pm should be the minimum for all weekday early voting.
I do think Texa's ballot by mail process is overly strict. It should be available to any voter that request it. I'm not the biggest fan of all mail-in ballot/automatic mail-in ballot states. I think you end up with lots of excess valid ballots floating around, especially if you don't have aggressive list maintenance process. It raises the risk for fraud in the election that you don't have with in-person voting.
This is the biggest flaw in Texas' voting system. We make registering to vote way harder than needs to be, and the way we do it doesn't increase the security of the election in any way.
We should allow registering and casting a provisional ballot on election day. Especially for people who are already registered in another county.
Another ridiculous piece of Texas Election law. Totally agree larger counties should be able to have more ballot drop off stations
noncongruent@reddit
California hasn't had any problems with voter fraud, and in fact nobody has, not in ages. California isn't the only state that offers mail voting as the default option, either. Voter fraud simply isn't an issue because of all the fraud detection methods and systems in place now. It's not like we just figured out how to run voting yesterday. The typical result of voter fraud is an arrest, simply because every time someone thinks they've brilliantly figured out a new way to cheat and actually try it, the reality is that someone else tried that fifty or seventy five years ago and got caught, resulting in additional security measures being designed and implemented. There aren't any zero day voting hacks left and haven't been for a very long time.
Rare-Investment2293@reddit
surprise surprise... surely this is just a coincidence
MissSuzyQ@reddit
Apparently it's a nationwide issue.
AffectionateKey7126@reddit
A couple of locations are. The voting map is overwhelmingly green.
badlyagingmillenial@reddit
Yes, things improved over time. It was different at the time of my comment.
phdmike1985@reddit
My voting map was green and I am having problems
HighNoonPasta@reddit
What voting map? Looking for info.
AffectionateKey7126@reddit
https://www.dallascountyvotes.org/vote-centers/
Click the vote center finder.
MarkTwang-@reddit
Voted early on a boring Sunday and it took 10 minutes.
clem_kruczynsk@reddit
Same here, the poll workers were super sweet too
FranksGun@reddit
Same
GeniusPhilanthropist@reddit
Major issues and computer that was used at bradfield elementary kept crashing. Overall took about 30 mins. But couldāve been 10.
woodstock9999@reddit
Voted 1st day of early voting in the morning at Marsh Lane Baptist Church and aside from being surprised by the long line (we vote there every election and never a line even 4 years ago) and waiting close to an hour, even on the first day, all went smoothly for us. Didn't see or hear of any issues. I think one of the reasons for the long line was that some voters were ill-prepared by all the amendments on the ballot so it took even longer for those folks to vote. My husband takes classes at Brookhaven and rarely saw any lines at the location there.
DutchBlaz3r@reddit
Voted last week and it didn't take long at all.
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
I went out to about 8 polling locations after I posted this. Turns out, a human has to report the wait times. A card is given to the last person in a line, and then they time how long it takes that person to get up to the front. Then the election judge reports that. Only sometimes they don't, and then Reverchon Park shows a 160 minute wait all morning when they don't have a line.
Has anybody been to SMU? It showed a significant wait all day, but I didn't have time to go there.
Outrageous_Ratio6701@reddit
Voted two weeks ago at Brookhaven college. Took 10 minutes. Great experience.
Tui717@reddit
I voted in person the Oak Lawn branch of the Dallas Public Library on Friday. There was a line that wrapped around the front and ended at about the halfway point of the building.
Line moved slowly but not enough to be notable. Once I got in, I had to fill out a paper since my voter registration had an old address (street address was the same just the apartment number changed).
Once I turned in the paper I went to the booth and voted but I had nowhere to go after because there was a backup to submit ballots because the machine wasnāt working.
They stopped loading people in to vote for a bit while they tried to clear out the people who voted and had to turn in their ballot. It was a slow process because the ballot box would be working and then it would stop and it would start beeping. Whenever that happened, a guy would shake the machine until it stopped, and the people could continue putting their ballots in. It just kept doing that for a while. It would work, it would break, guy would shake, start the process over.
It seemed to be working ok by the time it got to me though.
Also, donāt tell anyone but one do the people wanted to expedite the process so started giving people their āI votedā stickers while they were waiting to turn in their ballot. I put mine in my pocket and when I turned in my ballot, I secretly took a second one š¤«
migs_003@reddit
Voted for the first time ever on Saturday.
Got in line and waited like 10 mins... got to my turn... took about 20 mins to make my selections.
Was reading so mucb... ha
Dizzy-Concentrate284@reddit
Voted early Samuell Grand location. No problem
glacierfanclub@reddit
Easy peasy early voting at Lochwood library
sunsetrules@reddit
While I live in Dallas County, I don't live in Dallas. Since I decided to early vote near my work in Dallas, I was able to vote for people, but not any propositions. I'm not upset but I just want everyone to know.
Careless_Ocelot_4485@reddit
That makes sense since you received the ballot that conforms to your home address.
NoReplyBot@reddit
In/out.
Careless_Ocelot_4485@reddit
We voted in Richardson two weeks ago. We went the first Tuesday of early voting and there was a long line. We had our dog with us and we usually have no trouble with one of us going in while we wait with the pup, but with such a long line, we decided to leave and come back the next day. Very quick and easy. Probably 10 minutes tops.
Vegetable-Debate-263@reddit
I voted the first day of early voting and it took me an hour. I voted at the Oak Cliff Govnt Center off Jefferson Blvd. I think I went around 1 or 2 pm
warmbIood@reddit
Early voted last Friday at Grapevine public library. Zero wait, people there were helpful and friendly. Was in and out very quickly.
TyphoidJones@reddit
I live walking distance from the polling location in that big church on NW Hwy. I walked out my front door @9:05 AM today (Nov. 5), voted, and was back home by 9:25 AM. Easy-peasy š
ComplexDessert@reddit
I went at 3pm today. In and out in 8 minutes total. I voted for my daughter and son.
noncongruent@reddit
I voted two weeks ago. Less than ten minutes all-in, including waiting in line. No fuss, no muss, had a decent burger afterwards.
_loathed@reddit
Same, no burger.
Mental-Rooster4229@reddit
Where was the burger from?
noncongruent@reddit
My grill. :)
Arthurs_librarycard9@reddit
I voted last week, I was in and out within 5 minutes.
I drove my niece to vote today (it is her first time voting) and her experience was a bit odd? She registered to vote before the deadline, and it took her information forever to show up online. Then she never received her voter registration certification. The line was not long, but when she got to the front the poll worker told her her registration was not active, and the individual had to call on her behalf to reactivate it. That took about 20-30 minutes, but I have never heard of that before.Ā
pacman326@reddit
Walked in to a location in east dallas during early voting. Everything was calm with very kind poll workers. Walked out with that cool new sticker. Line was less than 3 mins for me.
BusinessWin7191@reddit
Voted today and due to technical issues and the attendant was being kind of rude to my friend ,besides that it was quick!
SilentSerel@reddit
I early voted at UTA.
There was a slight holdup because I changed my address after the deadline and I had to fill out a form. The lady had me step aside to do so and then left the area for several minutes herself. She was gone long enough that the other workers noticed and another one stepped in because I was done with my form.
The new worker took my form and tried to check me in and it said I already voted. The original lady showed back up around that time and swore that she didn't check me in so they got on the phone to try and investigate what was happening. It was then a third worker saw the slip of paper among some other papers on the table that indicated that the original lady did, indeed, check me in and had set the paper aside on top of another stack of papers when she had me fill out the form and then stepped away herself.
It was smooth sailing after that, and no harm was done, but I was panicking a little inside when this was all going on. Others were able to go in and out quickly and what line there was moved very fast.
Glittering_Deer_261@reddit
I voted two weeks ago. I had volunteered to work the polls in June. I had to follow up three times to hear back from the poll worker training system. By the time I got any kind of info it was too late to ask off from work. I voted at Baptist church at hillcrest and Royal. The line was easy. The fire alarm went off over and over- they said it did so all day. The door guard aggressively (like a power hungry Karen) held up her arm like a gate to prevent entry to the voting poll room even though the line was calm and no one was trying to enter unlawfully. Three poll workers got in a huge verbal argument. Basically an overly dramatic shitshow.
Glueberry_Ryder@reddit
Grapevine. 6 minutes from leaving the car to getting back in.
dart22@reddit
Teacher in Grand Prairie. I took my 1st grader - I'm actually voting today because both of our schedules were a little crazy last week - to the library to vote. Got in line at around 9:30, voted around 10:30. The volunteers were friendly and efficient. I was surprised nobody in line was really talking to each other.
TorsadesDePointes88@reddit
I voted today at a middle school close to my house. It was around 8:30am and I had just gotten off my shift as a nurse at Childrenās. I was there less than 10 minutes. Very smooth process.
cefuente1@reddit
My family of 3 voted early (last week) at the Sachse Courthouse/Dallas Co.(literally the only early voting location in Sachse). Because of our schedules we all went at different times and it turns out that all of us waited at least an hour in line (I waited 1.5 hours). Why on earth would they select that single tiny location for both Dallas and Collin counties? š¤·š¼āāļø
jerstoveg@reddit
Voted last Friday last day of early voting. I'm and out in 15 minutes in grand prairie
knowhistory99@reddit
Easy-peasy lemon-squeezy! I voted this morning, and the overall experience was so good, I feel guilty for others having to wait in line.
I walked up this morning, was first in line, and waited all of 30 seconds to be checked in. Checking in was smooth with no delays, and I proceeded to the voting machine that worked flawlessly. I guess I did have to wait 30-45 seconds for the ballot to print. I turned it in and walked out the door. And the folks helping out were gracious, positive, and helpful.
Barfignugen@reddit
I voted last Thursday in Handley. No line.
SimplyAng@reddit
Early voted at the Rowlett community center. My daughter drove over 5.5 hours to cast her ballot with us. We voted the third day of early voting and it took longer to find a parking space and walk in than it did to get checked in to vote.
Far_Site493@reddit
It was fairly quick, except I ran into a guy from high school I did not care to see, miles and miles away from the high school.
ArdentlyArduous@reddit
I voted during early voting. The closest place to me was the IANT mosque in Richardson. We waited maybe 5 minutes. My husband and I took my mother-in-law with us, since she also just moved to Richardson. She said that it was a lot easier/faster than where she used to vote when she lived in Dallas (I think Marsh Lane Baptist Church???). I do hope the Richardson City Hall is up and running soon, though, because we've voted there during a normal Saturday library outing since we moved here in 2015. I'm not a huge fan of voting at any religious site. I think our country would be better if we all thought about other Americans rather than church while voting.
Odd_Champion_9293@reddit
Collin county Virginia pkwy
In and out 10 min
Left feeling like a celeb
coltonmusic15@reddit
Early voted last Wednesday - walked in at like 2pm and there was no one in line and I was in and out in like 4 minutes. Hoping to see Texas kick Ted Cruz out and give some popular vote support to Harris.
Traditional_One8465@reddit
I went to vote today during lunch at Harrystone Rec. I was in and out in less than 15mins. I had already done my research beforehand on which candidate I wanted to vote for (using vote.org), as I never vote straight ticket. And the stickers were really nice! Got one with the Dallas skyline, a longhorn and the texas flag.
Whachugonnadoo@reddit
7:10am this morning in Richardson - none of the 4 voter check-in machines worked and all had to be rebooted. Technical glitches with the actual touchscreen for voting. But no line and v friendly volunteers. Total time there was 20ā
Aggravating-Lunch-22@reddit
Less than ten minutes . No fuss.
heliumeyes@reddit
Are you looking for people in Dallas proper only? Iām in Dallas county. I voted the first day of early voting and while the line and process itself were smooth, I was issued an incorrect ballot. The US congressional district on mine was wrong and I flagged it before going down further. Be happy to share more if this is of interest to you.
maefrogg@reddit
I attempted to vote the first day of early voting at University Park UMC. When I arrived I was a little shocked at the length of the line because the voter map had shown there wasn't a wait (knew it had to be too good to be true,) but since I had already driven over there I decided to wait it out. I probably waited in line for close to 15 minutes before finding out there was something was going on with the printing of the ballots and whether or not our precinct numbers were being applied. The election official said there could be a chance only our statewide vote would count if we preceded. I chose to leave because I didn't want to risk my local election choices not being counted (we had 18 props ffs!) I came back the following Saturday (26th) early in the morning and had a one minute wait. I know it was one minute because I was the official timekeeper for the voter map. Yup, I'm kind of a big deal, lol. From there things were seamless and all the polling staff were super friendly. Early Saturday morning voting will now be my norm. I only found out today that not all states have early voting (umm, hello voter suppression) and I will not take it for granted in the future, even if it means driving to the polls more than once to cast my vote.
James324285241990@reddit
E poll books used to check in voters constantly crashing, county-wide. I went to vote at 7am, didn't get out until 8:30am. Not that much of a line, just incredibly slow because the machines wouldn't stay on or work.
Used to be an election judge and former clerks have been texting me all day asking for help
jo4890@reddit
It was really quick, there was only 1 person in front of me in line.
eec0354@reddit
I voted in Frisco. There was a short line when I showed up at 6:45am.. but after that when I walked past the school later in the day there wasnāt a line at all. Generally painless and great experience!
Dark-Perversions@reddit
Voted early at my usual location. Maybe 20 minutes? No real issues, and I recognized some of the poll workers from prior times. They were on the ball and things moved smoothly. Big ups to the people keeping the wheels of democracy turning.
CatLadyAmy1@reddit
Early voter - Collin county. Walked in, they verified my ID, I voted and put in my ballot. Easy, 10 minutes tops.
ApprehensiveAnswer5@reddit
Voted mid morning. No line, in and out in about 15 minutes. Zero issues. I always vote on Election Day, itās my āthingā, hah.
snickelbetches@reddit
I'm in Fort Worth. I voted at McLean middle school and was in and out in 3 minutes. I used my passport card which they had never seen before and it didn't EXACTLY match whatever they had in the system but they figured me out. Diverse group of people running the polling location.
Im a purple person with no party. I voted because I must. I wasn't thrilled with either choice for president but I knew which one I wanted less.
individual0@reddit
Waited in line for about 10 minutes. Then voted for Trump. The whole process was easy. And I think there was a photographer for D magazine out front of my polling place at 3505 maple. Took a picture with him and left.
xinstinctive@reddit
Went to UP UMC on a Wednesday morning during early voting. No line, about 25 others voting, stayed about that full throughout. Super duper easy, really kind poll workers. Excellent experience.
BubbaHairyback@reddit
Voted today and was in and out in under ten minutes.
flaminghotchiodos06@reddit
Talk about half assed journalism
Empty_Sky_1899@reddit
I early voted, but my out of state college student was unable to vote even though she submitted her mail in ballot request with plenty of time to receive it. She never received a ballot and there is no indication on the county (Collin) vote tracker website her request was ever received. She has a friend also from Collin County in the same situation. Iām wondering if the county is up to somethingā¦For the record she has been out of state for every election since fall 2020 and this is the first time her ballot has not arrived.
Tight-Physics2156@reddit
Arlington - Elzie Odom, very organized. Lots of people and great turnout. There was a guy out there dressed today as Trump stepping out in front of cars waving a giant red Trump flag as they pulled in to vote.. with a trash bag prop beside him. Pretty sure that is election intimidation. Machines were working fine when voted.
llusty1@reddit
In and out in less than 5 mins with zero wait time 10/28/24 @ Lockwood library.
IAmSoUncomfortable@reddit
Are you only interested in stories about today? If not, I voted early 2 weeks ago. Fretz is my nearest polling place but every day the line was extremely long when I checked. The Addison convention center I was in and out in 5 minutes. The workers were so friendly and it was easy to park!
Codee33@reddit
Same for me. Live near Addison, usually vote at Fretz, but the line is always long there. Convention took about 15 minutes total
patmorgan235@reddit
And you can hang out at the park after.
Blor-Utar@reddit
Yeah voted early and only one person in line I had to wait behind.
Election Day voters are wild
IAmSoUncomfortable@reddit
Iām way too nervous to wait until Election Day. My MIL fell yesterday and broke both her wrists yesterday and is in the hospital. She happened to have already voted but what if she was waiting until today? (Actually Iām bummed she already voted because of her vote but still)
Bellumbern@reddit
Less than 15-20 mins, but I voted early after my CPR class. Since it was at my local library, I checked out a book after.
v_impressivetomato@reddit
addison convention center ~8:20am, in line for just over an hour. calm and smooth process.
separately, when I went to check my voter status, it said I had no voter history but I voted in 2022. Anyone know why that is or if Iām misunderstanding what should be reflected there?
TexasGrrl@reddit
I don't believe the Rowett vote centers are reporting in a timely manner on the map https://www.dallascountyvotes.org/vote-centers
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
Yeah, and Reverschon has been showing 160 minute waits and there is no wait
PM_ME_USED_TAMPONS@reddit
Voted last early Monday in Collin County. I was in an out in about 15 minutes, but it was disheartening to be the youngest person there as someone in their early 30s.
laundryman2@reddit
You have to think about the demographic that would be coming that early on a Monday. Probably older retired folks. I work from home and ran out to vote and was also the youngest person at the Allen ISD service center.
johnny_ryde@reddit
While I understand you are looking for feedback about Election day voting, it looks like you will get a ton of feedback about early voting.. there is great advantage to it, canāt fathom why more people donāt.. hereās another
I voted a week ago at Weiss Park, about 11 am.. in and out under 10 minutes. Lots of stations and staff.
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
I vote early because I always have to cover elections on election day, which makes it difficult to stand in line. š¤·š»āāļø
ChigaruSP@reddit
I waited until today because Iām at a SAHM and being able to walk to a polling location trumped packing us up in the car and driving to an early polling location, unloading, and voting while wrangling my 8-month old and then doing it all again. Voted at KB Polk today, walked over and waited 10-15 minutes, very friendly neighborhood location - lots of neighbors and friends, lots of people proud to be out voting, and a lot of people walking in from their homes.
Iant-Iaur@reddit
With you on this one Johnny. Once I started doing things early as opposed to doing them on time, my life became far less stressful!
ItsJustAPoleThang@reddit
Two weeks ago, I voted on a Saturday at the Carrollton library. It was pretty easy. The only thing is that I found it weird how Trump supporters were walking all around the parking entrance handing out pamphlets to people. They even had a child doing it. Maybe that's allow but I never seen that before the previous times I voted.
alphabet_sam@reddit
Super easy, voted at 8am on a Saturday morning. Took all of 8 minutes in and out
jyanyanyanyan@reddit
Voted early in Plano last week, was no line at all and was in and out in a few minutes
shuknjive@reddit
My son and I voted Oct. 27th at the Vietnamese Community Center in Garland. We were in and out in 5 minutes. One of the best voting experiences I've ever had! Not to mention the election workers were just the friendliest people.
BladeFancypants@reddit
I voted a couple of weeks ago at Audelia Road Library. It took a little over an hour start to finish. The bottleneck was checking people in; there were numerous voting machines empty at all times.
Free-Database-9917@reddit
2 weeks ago, I voted and waited 20 minutes and it was having trouble verifying my address so I had to fill out paperwork manually. Other than that not bad
markja60@reddit
My wife and I voted early, Nov 1, in Plano. It was easy, in and out. My daughter voted that evening before the polls closed. She had to wait a few minutes, but had no problems voting.
However, all three of us had a problem with aggressive Harris supporters insisting that we vote Democratic. If one were to believe the news reports, this sort of aggressive behavior goes with the Trump crowd. However, the Republican supporter was kind, polite, and helpful, with directions to enter the polling place.
I got tired of the Harris supporter and told her to back off. My daughter warned the guy who was harassing her that it was in his best interest to back off, fast!
My take away was that some people get overzealous with their politics, even though they mean no harm.
beetlejuicemayor@reddit
Voted this morning in Prosper and it was quick. The machines were working fine and the poll workers explained everything well.
Sanchastayswoke@reddit
Voted early on Halloween at like 6 pm. Zero wait times, seamless process.Ā
PeepoBoi@reddit
Walked in, voted, walked out. Always a painless process thanks to the long early voting period!
noble_land_mermaid@reddit
I voted at Samuel Grand during the last weekend of early voting. I waited maybe 10 minutes? The poll workers were calling out and celebrating first time voters - I saw 2 come through while I was there.
nace71@reddit
Voted 10/21 in Azle. Easy in and out. Scanner was acting up a bit, but my ballot scanned fine.
hearmeout29@reddit
Easy as pie during early voting.
yamorondog@reddit
Voted at Audelia Road Library this morning around 9:30 and was in and out in 20 min.
Dabclipers@reddit
I voted last week, didn't have any sort of issues.
Took me about four minutes to go from entering the queue to having my ID checked and assigned a machine. I had a journal with me where I'd already written down who I was voting for in each race and what my choices for the propositions would be, so it only took about three minutes to vote at the booth. Then maybe another two minutes to vote and that was that.
I'm 28, and was easily the youngest person that was voting at the time which was before lunch on Tuesday.
BlackStarCorona@reddit
I previously always voted at civic buildings near me and it usually takes an hour or so. I went to a middle school near by and it took me five mins in and out the door.
H2Ospecialist@reddit
Voted in Fort Worth and besides my ballot being spit out the first time I tried to submit it, I was in and out within a few minutes.
hedgerowhurdler@reddit
I voted at 8:15 on the first day of early voting in Grand Prairie. I was there maybe 15 total minutes. Everything ran smoothly and the volunteers were courteous and helpful. About as good as I could expect, which is typical for this location. I voted because I want to live in a democracy and not a fascist republic.
HStave73@reddit
I voted early. I have a form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy so I use a cane or walker. They had a voting booth where I could sit down, which was amazing. Took us about 20 minutes to get through the line, get checked in and vote.
SGlespaul@reddit
I voted early on Monday when early voting first opened.
Usually it's an in-out 10 minute affair for me, this year I waited maybe 30 minutes to vote and the line was longer than usual. Nothing went wrong though.
themeggggoooo@reddit
Voted in rockwall and it took less than 10 minutes. Everyone there was so kind and helpful.
krasovecc@reddit
Not dallas, but in Allen I was in and out in 5 minutes at 11am
RemoteEffect2677@reddit
Oak Lawn Library. Early afternoon on first day of early voting. Probably took 35-40 minutes, but the line was wrapped around the building and moved fairly seamlessly.
marodriguez16@reddit
Voted at Reverchon park community center. Got there at 9:50 and left about an hour a half later. Super long line but easy enough. One person in the time I was there was in line for some time with a MAGA hat. Once they entered the portion of the line that was indoors, a poll worker asked them to remove the hat and they complied. His apparent wife said āwell we knew that was comingā. Referencing the poll worker asking the man to take his hat off.
Kommanderson1@reddit
Voted absentee from Europe. Sent ballots to Tarrant County via DHL. Nothing showing on SoS ballot tracker website. In fact, I receive āvoter not foundā errors when inputting my info, and my wifeās says āVoter Status: Canceled.ā
Both the SoS and County point fingers to the other. County insists our ballots were received and āare being processed,ā but thereās nothing to prove that. They maintain they arenāt responsible for the website, while SoS says the county is responsible for entering the info.
Overall, itās pretty gotdamn frustrating. I just hope enough people in Texas get out and vote for democracy (at least what semblance of it we have in America), on behalf of those of us who have tried our best - m but probably wonāt be counted.
txnewsprincess@reddit (OP)
Will you email me? I can ask some questions too. bethany.erickson@dmagazine.com
Kommanderson1@reddit
Just emailed you.
TexasDonkeyShow@reddit
I early voted!
not4real25@reddit
Garland- in and out in 10 minutes this morning.
harmonic_pies@reddit
I voted last week, deliberately picked a location the Collin County site showed zero wait times: Parker City Hall. Very easy, painless, poll workers and voters all cheerful and easygoing.
singleguy79@reddit
Voted last week at the North Garland library. Took about 10 minutes with zero issues.
D_Dumps@reddit
Voted early at Northway Christian. Super quick, no line because there were like 40 voting booths. Most, if not all, booths were occupied with a steady flow of people in and out during my 10 min there.
Sure_K_Fine_Whatevs@reddit
SMU has had a good line all morning. There was a bit of trouble with the equipment at first, but it's rolling smoothly now.
obey_2k18@reddit
Voted last week over in Carrollton and had no issues at all. No line! Everyone was so KIND! Go vote ā¤ļø
FuzzyNet4408@reddit
I voted on the first day of early voting in North Dallas on my lunch break. I am a minority so I had to represent. The line was very long and even met Averie Bishop. I did not know it was her and she came up to me to ask me if I knew xyz. Of course I took a little offense because I felt like she was talking down to me but I just was confused and blindsided by her questions (she was just trying to give me info to make an informed decision) since I did not know her. She could tell I was confused so she asked a question to the person next to me. I felt like she looked familiar and then saw a photo of her on a campaign sign. I was so embarrassed and felt bad haha! She was just trying to help me out. I was gonna vote for her anyway.
ratfink_111@reddit
I really hope Averie wins!! I voted for her too!! We need new blood!
rockandrolljoel33@reddit
I voted at Booker T Washington this morning, waited from about 7:15 until 8:30, a bit of a line but not crazy, it was quick and easy once I got to the front of the line!
Pharrelldfw@reddit
Voted in Deep Ellum this morning. Plenty of parking, friendly staff, checked in without any issues, were about 10 people in line ahead of me to vote. They had about 6 voting machines. Was in/out in about 20 mins.
lenzkies79088@reddit
Voted at collin county College.
First time I've ever voted and was in and out in 5 mins. Had to bring my toddlers and everyone was very welcoming.
Delicious_Carpet_326@reddit
I voted in Lewisville the first week of early voting. It was quick and easy, very short line. I saw more early voters than ever before in my life.
I did see suspicious people acting casually outside, they seemed to be "observers." One of them gave me a bad vibe, but who cares. I voted and I am done. It was super quick because I didn't need to vote for anyone on the back side of the ballot.
WhoKnewHomesteading@reddit
Early voted first available day, Kaufman County, total time line and to vote maybe 15 min.
Top_Science5897@reddit
It was my first time voting in Texas since Iām a native Californian. I saw all week the early polling station was super crowded. So I was just gonna go during the weekend so I donāt have to go after work. But I found out literally at 8:30pm on Friday from a politician ad I got in the mail that it was my last day for early voting and polls close at 9pm.
So I made the mad dash to the polling station and it was relatively empty by that point thankfully. All the poll workers were super cute sweet old people. I had voters guide on my phone that my friend sent me that I was planning on using for the filling out the ballot. But they informed me that I was not allowed to use my phone. Which I found really strange because in California you can use your phone in polling stations.
It was important for me to vote because we have to get these right wing crazies out. Especially Ted Cruz
bigbugzman@reddit
Early voted. Went at 7 am. 20 people in line. Took 10 mins.
naked_avenger@reddit
Went and early voted on Friday. In and out in less than 10 minutes. No line. Sam Grand center. Spent more time talking to another voter after the fact in the parking lot.
nonamejd123@reddit
They had to manually type in DL numbers since the scanner didn't work... so it might have taken upwards of 2 minutes to get checked in.
Jernbek35@reddit
I voted on Halloween in McKinney. There was no line at the library I went to and the process was extremely quick and easy. One thing that was a weird hiccup that we didn't realize prior was they gave my wife the ballot for our previous address (we rented that address out to tenants) even though our ID and voter registration had been changed in the system. We didn't realize until after we cast our ballots because she mentioned she voted No on specific propositions that I didn't have on mine. Looked it up and lo and behold it was for the previous address.
As a caveat, the other address is still in McKinney so not a huge deal but just strange.
Quirky-Mode8676@reddit
Voted in Denton county and there was no line, but a steady trickle of people.
Sass_McQueen64@reddit
Voted last week. Took about 15 minutes total and had a lovely experience with an older lady in front of me who had recently received her citizenship and was SO excited to vote for the first time. Everyone cheered her on and it was so nice.
NothingButTheTea@reddit
I voted on Thursday at the main location due to needing to do a limited ballot, and it was pretty rough. We got there, and there was a 30 minute wait already. Apparently it was due to them running out of some time of form or envelope.
The kicker was that they could have just walked accross the parking lot to get more, but it took them over 30 minutes of voters waiting in line to do just that. I'm thankful for the poll workers, but whoever organized that specific site was smoking something or maybe too past their prime.
Thick_Preparation648@reddit
My husband and I went with our kids on a Saturday morning, about 8:30 am. We were out by 8:50am. Super easy, barely a wait, staff was friendly.
Techsas-Red@reddit
Invited last week in Flower Mound around 7:45 am. I was literally the only non-volunteer in the building. I also saw a few min ago on a community FB page that people report zero wait and no line.
CombatConrad@reddit
I voted a couple weeks ago. Went to a small community center. About 30 minutes after opening. Line was about 20-30 in front of me. They were taking about twenty at a time. The total time was about 20 minutes from leaving the car to back in it. All in all, it was peaceful, quick, and non-political. No weirdos with signs a few hundred feet out.
Patient-Bluejay-761@reddit
No line at all. Friendly people. The district I work for gave us the day off so I chose to vote today.
odiamemas16@reddit
Voted last Monday morning at the MLK library in South Dallas, was in and out in 5 minutes
leeny1018@reddit
Voted early. In and out. Easy peasy.
hardleft121@reddit
see the other thread here
spicyramenplz@reddit
Ditto this thread. It was horrible in Dallas County this morning.
hardleft121@reddit
same here. Anne Frank elementary for me. 30 people in the first hour, slow
traintozynbabwe@reddit
30 yo M, voted at maple lane elementary this AM, got there at 7:15/30 ish, whole experience took ~30-45 mins. They had 5 volunteers manning 4 sign in stations, 1 was a floater. Everyone was pretty quiet, everyone did their thing and left.
It felt good. No matter what happens this election, Iām happy that I spoke my mind.
FPflask8@reddit
Voted this morning in Las Colinas at a fire station. It didnāt start on time and the person that passed out the sample ballet said that the judge that was supposed to be there was late. Dunno how it works but I thought it was interesting.
NMinDallas1@reddit
Voted on 10/22 at Brookhaven. No issues. Short line the was handled efficiently.
sportsnatic@reddit
Voted 2 weeks ago. 40 min wait, in NE Tarrant County. Other than the wait, everything went smoothly. No one misbehaved.
Iant-Iaur@reddit
I've voted early about two weeks ago, and it was pretty quick. In and out of the polling center in kess than 20 minutes. Everyone was very polite, friendly, and helpful; the polling station vibe was almost joyful.
All in all, quick and positive experience, happy to see my fellow Dallasites being adult and civilized.
DallasCommune@reddit
Voted early last Monday @ Brookhaven. Took all of 15 minutes.
HRApprovedUsername@reddit
I voted Friday morning at the downtown courthouse. No wait. Pretty easy.
Birgey182@reddit
Voted at the court building in downtown Dallas last Saturday morning. I was in and out in less than five minutes.
SadAdministration438@reddit
Voted today at Carpenter Middle School (Collin Co.) and barely had a line (went at 8:30 am). Pretty easy overall.
Hermit-The-Crab33@reddit
Collin County- walked in around 10am on the first Tuesday of early voting. No line, I voted, and left.
No crazies or pressure to vote any specific way
Rich-Grand7250@reddit
We voted early at Dallas College in Garland. Very quick and easy - in and out in under 15 minutes. There was no line. My son voted this morning at the church down the street and it took him 10 minutes. No issues.
FreshStartLiving@reddit
Voted in Denton County (Celina Fire Station #3) two weeks ago. Walked in, waited behind one person and was out the door in 5 mins or so. Everyone there was extremely friendly. Was a super easy process.
boostedbean@reddit
Voted this morning in Richardson at 7:40. Walked right in and out in five minutes. Easiest Iāve ever had. Very friendly staff and helpful to everyone that walked in.
AdOnly6754@reddit
Voted the first day of early voting in Lake Dallas and there was no line.
justplainndaveCGN@reddit
Voted at the Garland campus for Dallas College.
Staff was a little rude, at least in the line. Once inside the voting area, they were really helpful. I think I waited for over an hour (voted the last day of early voting). That was the hardest part. I did not expect so many people. I wish we could double the amount of voting areas, so more people could be let in.
spicyramenplz@reddit
1.5 hours in line in Dallas County this morning.
CommodoreVF2@reddit
Early voted at downtown courthouse, easy-peasy.
IHaveABigNetwork@reddit
Voting was easy and painless.
TotesMcGotes13@reddit
Probably not your target demographic for input, but early voting last Sunday in the suburbs (Flower Mound) was absolutely painless. In and out in 15 minutes or less.