Hmmm ... It's only one precinct, but Democratic turnout in Texas seems underwhelming
I rushed home from work today to get my voter registration card and head for the polls. I figured I get there about 4 p.m. and then stand on line, as I did in 2004, for an about an hour. screensaver 6600 gratuit
No, no.screensaver 6600 gratuit
I walked right in and right up to the sign in table, and was promptly given an access code and dispatched to a machine. Since I voted straight ticket — yes, I did vote straight ticket Republican — I was in and out of there in less than two minutes.screensaver 6600 gratuit
My precinct is Precinct 34, located in the heart of Houston’s Montrose neighborhood; Precinct 34 is probably the gayest precinct in Texas. The election judge, the clerks, they’re all “family.” The precinct incorporates most of Houston’s gay bars, and the polling station itself is inside a gay bed and breakfast. If you’re uncomfortable being around gay men and women, you’d be uncomfortable voting here.screensaver 6600 gratuit
Precinct 34 is, as you might imagine, heavily Democratic.screensaver 6600 gratuit
In Texas, our law requires election judges to post cumulative turnout every hour on the hour. So I stopped to look at the cumulative turnout for Precinct 34. As of 4 p.m. CST, fewer than five hundred voters had voted. A typical Texas precinct has 3,000 registered voters. That makes for a turnout rate in Precinct 34 of 17%, below what you’d expect in a typical midterm and far below what you’d expect in a presidential year.screensaver 6600 gratuit
Moreover, I think gays and lesbians are exceptionally motivated voters; they’re much more likely than their heterosexual peers to vote.screensaver 6600 gratuit
If Precinct 34 is representative of what’s happening elsewhere in the state, Texas Democrats are not turning out. Now maybe that’s because there’s just not a lot on the ballot here to draw their interest. But if you want to vote against Bush by proxy, does it really matter what’s on the ballot?screensaver 6600 gratuit
I don’t know. I’m not reaching any conclusions. I’m only reporting. You decide.screensaver 6600 gratuit
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