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    • El Paso voters and candidates speak on the last day of 2024 early voting
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    El Paso voters and candidates speak on the last day of 2024 early voting

    Sakege Posted on

    Voters and candidates demonstrated in large numbers throughout El Paso as the The early voting session came to an end. on Friday with Election Day approaching.

    El Paso County set a new record for the largest day of in-person early voting on Friday with 20,000 ballots cast, breaking the old record of 19,067 set on the first day of early voting in the November 2020 election, the county said. county elections department. . Election Day is Tuesday, November 5.

    Approximately 190,000 votes were cast by mail or in person during the 12-day early voting period, which began on Monday, October 21 and ended on Friday, November 1.

    While those numbers are solid, they fall short of the more than 225,000 elected early in the 2020 presidential election during the COVID-19 pandemic, which could mean Election Day will be defined by long lines and frustrated voters.

    From the Marty Robbins Recreation Center on the East Side to Bassett Place in Central and the Van Doren Library on the West Side, turnout was strong Friday. Lines of voters lined up to cast their ballots at several polling locations.

    Even in an election full of prominent figures mayoral races and El Paso City HallMost voters were more motivated to cast their ballots in the presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.

    Some didn’t even vote in the El Paso County elections.

    El Paso City Council candidates vie for attention at Marty Robbins Recreation Center

    Although the lines at the Marty Robbins Recreation Center paled in comparison to those seen on the first day of early voting, candidates vying for the Eastridge-Mid-Valley District 7 seat on the City Council were available to make their presentations to voters as they joined the line.

    Standing just past an orange cone indicating the 100-foot limits that campaigns must adhere to while promoting their candidates was council candidate Fabiola Campos-López, who has visited polling sites across the East Side for the past two weeks.

    “I think it’s different in every poll,” he said, getting his message to voters before they go to the polls. “In some places, people are more educated and have already done their research.”

    Further: Guide to Election Day 2024 in El Paso: What you need to know before you vote

    “(Voters) are mostly here for the presidential election, so it’s good to be here.”

    Not far behind was her strongest competitor, Lily Limón, the apparent favorite in the race.

    “I think that today (voters) are really concentrated and come to cast their vote,” he said. “They’ve done their research.”

    Like Campos-López, Limón has been touring District 7 for the past 12 days and has been successful in reaching voters, something she attributes largely to her well-known status in the area.

    “I think I have an advantage because of the name recognition,” he said.

    Other activists were not as forthcoming: a woman holding a life-size cutout of mayoral candidate Brian Kennedy refused to talk about early voting, and nearby, a group of men crowded around a truck wrapped in campaign signs for El Paso County Sheriff Candidate Oscar Ugarte declined to provide their names.

    For the past few days, José Chávez, who cast his vote downtown, has been frequenting the recreation center wearing a Trump hat he bought at a local thrift store. However, the electoral official told him that his hat constituted an illegal electoral campaign.

    Texas election laws prohibit election activity, including the wearing of T-shirts, hats, or clothing for or against any candidate or political party, within 100 feet of a voting site.

    “I didn’t bother anyone there,” Chavez said.

    Chavez’s support for Trump is rooted in the presidential candidate’s hard-man personality: tough on terrorists and tough on immigrants.

    “My big problem is … that President Trump is the lesser of two evils,” he said. “I read the scriptures and they are both evil… (but) every country in the world defends its own borders (if Trump is not elected) we are heading to World War III, a nuclear war.”

    Richard Hernandez, who voted Friday, disagreed.

    “I just don’t like Trump,” he said. “That’s the main race.”

    He confessed to having voted against all the propositions on the ballot except Proposition Ethat would allocate $32.7 million for a new animal shelter in the county.

    Javier Zaragoza, for his part, did not vote in the Municipal Council elections and did not know in which district he lives.

    “I always vote,” he reflected. “I think it’s our civic duty, I think it counts.”

    Presidential elections generate long lines at Bassett Place

    A long line of voters could be seen at the Bassett Place hall on Friday, but security quickly told reporters they were not allowed to report on private property, according to a management directive.

    That, however, did not stop Marina Rush from explaining what brought her to the polls.

    “We want Harris to be there,” he said. “We don’t want a second term with Trump.”

    While he found Harris honest and trustworthy, he criticized Trump for derogatory comments he has made about women, including his daughter, as well as about the 34 serious crimes was indicted earlier this year for falsifying business records.

    “I can’t believe our justice system,” Rush said. “They have completely let us down.”

    Although she recognized the importance of local races, Rush said the presidential race was the main draw for her.

    “I’m interested in El Paso, but my interest is really the presidency,” she said. “All these things that can happen in the future will happen much sooner (if Trump is elected). It’s a shame.”

    Trumpeter for Trump performs at Van Doren Library

    Standing in the Van Doren Library parking lot on Friday was David Delgado, dressed head to toe in a white mariachi outfit, playing tunes in support of his candidate.

    “People don’t understand that if Harris is elected, they will continue to bring in these people, these illegal immigrants, and they won’t be able to control the Democratic Party,” he said while standing behind a large Trump sign. “I’ve never done this for any other president, but if I had to go to war, I would fight for this guy.”

    James Barton decided on his vote for mayor, but said the City Council race was “kind of a toss-up.” After waiting 40 minutes to cast her vote, she asked the El Paso County Elections Department to invest in additional voting machines.

    “People can’t wait an hour,” he said. “I’m retired, so I can do it, but for these workers it’s very difficult.”

    Just as the district 7 race I was playing in the parking lot across town, West Side District 1 candidates Voters could be seen milling around the lot, hoping to attract last-minute voters who might still be undecided.

    “I think the turnout here has been fantastic,” said West Side Council candidate Alejandra Chavez. “I think voters are well-informed and well-intentioned. I haven’t seen any negativity, which is great.”

    Not far away was one of his three competitors. in the District 1 raceTom Handy, who has taken up residence at the library since early voting began.

    For his party, Handy said the crowds coming to the Van Doren Library have been fairly evenly divided between voters who know exactly who they support and those who are receptive to hearing a candidate’s message face to face.

    Even though some voters avoid local elections, he said local elections really impact a person’s daily life.

    “I think the City Council has a greater effect than the president will have,” he said.

    Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached at [email protected].

    Sakege
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