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Election Day 2008

I voted. Have you? No matter who you’re voting for, it’s important to vote. Exercise your right.

Open Thread on election stuff! In the comments you can post any election news, let us know what it’s like for you locally, or share an election story.

ETA 8:06 Eastern: Looks like there are no surprises thus far. Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennesse, and Oklahoma projected for McCain, Illinois, Maine, Vermont, Massachusets, Connecticut, New Jersey, Deleware, Maryland and DC projected for Obama. People in the midwest, mountains, and West coast, keep going!

ETA 10:00 Eastern: Ohio goes to Obama — HOME STATE REPRESENT!!! Ohio had been under a cloud of shame for a long time, but they started to wake up from it recently. For the first time in many years, they elected a Democratic governor two years ago. Mainly because of what happened in 2004 (a travesty overseen by the Republican running for office, J Kenneth Blackwell, thus his tragic loss). And now they’ve made up for their mistakes. Woo!

ETA 11:13 Eastern: Polls just closed on the west coast and everyone is calling it: Obama for the WIN MUTHERFUCKAS!

ETA 11:27 Eastern: At 11 we were watching Comedy Central.  had just turned from CNN.  Jon and Stephen were talking about something, then all the sudden Jon said, “Barack Obama is going to be the president.”  My roomate and I both said “Wait, what?”  then someone in our building screamed out the window: OBAMA!!  A millisecond later our other roommate, who works in Times Square, called and said: “Listen!”  There were people screaming in the background.  It took us a full minute to truly understand what had just happened.

I am… I don’t know what i am.  In 2004 I cried so hard when Kerry conceded and wouldn’t fight.  I cried for me, for my country, for a lot of things.  Right now I am crying again, but for different reasons.  It’s not going to be perfect.  Obama isn’t perfect.  But for the first time since 2001 I really feel like there is hope that things can get better.  We have to work for it.  Hard.  But we won’t be working against a behmouth intent on destroying us.  That’s my dream.

And also: Black President.

22 thoughts on “Election Day 2008”

  1. pacer521 says:

    heheh great post, I guess I’ll take advantage of this section. I wrote a post already about how McCain lost.

    http://culturedecoded.wordpress.com/2008/11/01/whymccainhaslost/

  2. J. Andrews says:

    Google Maps has a live results map once polls start to close. You can customize it and embed it.

    http://maps.google.com/help/maps/elections/#2008_election

  3. Julia says:

    I voted! Just thought I’d check in and share, although my story is (fortunately) very boring: I got on line at 7 this morning and cast my vote at 8. Polls opened at 7, so I am not sure whether the hour-long waits will persist the whole day, or whether that was just lots of people getting out early… or whether even more people will get out later. Either way, no problems at all and the whole thing ran pretty smoothly. This was in DC, which I am sure is a lock for Obama regardless. Now I just need to hold off on biting my nails all day so I still have some left to chew on later when polls start to close… the see-sawing between excited and nervous is making me feel ill. btw, free Starbucks coffee for voters!

  4. thesciencegirl says:

    I was voter #42 at my polling place in Chicago at 6:45 this morning. In the moments after casting my vote for Obama, I smiled, I cried, and I got some free Starbucks. I have a ticket for tonight’s Obama rally in Grant Park. It feels like Christmas.

  5. Erica says:

    I expected a wait, but damn our polling place was crowded. The line stretch out of the school gym, through the cafeteria, and halfway around the outside of the school! Some people had brought lawn chairs!

    After waiting about 15 minutes, we learned that people with kids under 6 were allowed to cut in line (and people over 65) — so my husband took the 4-yr-old, I took the 2-yr-old, and we got through it quickly. It looked like otherwise it would have been a 90 minute wait.

    I was so completely psyched about the turnout. Even though I know this is South Carolina and we’re probably not a swing state, it was just incredibly encouraging. Everybody in the line was very cheerful and patient, and thing seemed to be going smoothly in the actual voting booths too.

    And I apparently get a discount at Shane’s Rib Shack with my “I VOTED” sticker. Score!

  6. J. Andrews says:

    I was there around 7:30. I waited less than a minute. It all looked very organized. They had extra tables with blinders set up in addition to the booths. I think not just for wheelchairs or people who had to sit down, but just to have more places for people to fill in their ovals at.

  7. Foxessa says:

    I’ve been so sick that at all the many plans I had for this most significant and joyful election day have evaporated. But I did vote, post the before-work crowd. My across-the-hall neighbor was waiting when our polling place opened at 6 AM and it took her an hour and a half.

    Our polling place is at a vocational high school that is all African American and Hispanic African students, teachers and administration. Usually on election days we white and Asian folks, who are the vastly predominate population in this part of our city, don’t even register on their awareness. Today though, very sharply dressed young male students were seated on the steps of one of the school’s doors that opens to the sidewalk that feeds the voters to the polling area. Very softly one asked, “Obama?” We smiled and thumbs-upped. Huge grins spread across their faces and they high-fived, along with “AhIIIte!”

    Our part of the city is one of the places to which freedmen and women flowed during and post the Civil War, to work in the textile factories and sweat shops that were here. We’re also only blocks east of the old wharfs (which were very busy in those days), and the warehouses serviced by the trains. Many New York state free people of color had already been working over here. The oldest still operating business/building in the city is there, now called the Ear Inn, but was the James Brown House, that serviced the free black labor force employed on the docks and the trains. The building we live in was thrown up originally to provide housing for this influx up from the South. All this felt very close to us today. I wish I wasn’t so sick so I could make more sense.

    Love, C.

    Love, C.

  8. Sarah says:

    I’m really hoping everyone who can vote votes! I live in a country that isn’t democratic and so I’ve never voted, and I really hate the fact that people who do live in democracies don’t realize how lucky they are. Don’t take it for granted, vote!!

  9. Erin says:

    I Voted!

    I live right here in Washington, DC and I voted on my way to work. I was in and out in ~10 minutes. Other fellow voters were not so lucky: one of my supervisors just walked into our office after having standed in line for more than 2 hours. Another co-worker, driving down 16th Street, NW said there were at least 1,000 people (he could be exaggerating, I dunno) at one polling place and another place I saw had lines -literally- wrapped around the corner. It’s exciting as all get out here in DC. Add to that I’m seeing the Bad Brains tonight and this Tuesday is lookin’ A-OK!

  10. Drew says:

    I got in and got out fast. I didn’t vote Obama because I’m a business owner and I don’t want my taxes to go up, but I do hope that everyone voted their conscience. There is a lot of excitment in the air.

    VOTE people!

    Either way, the election made history.

    First black candidate
    First woman veep candidate
    Oldest male candidate

  11. Aunti Disestablishmentarian says:

    Woke up to a beeping sound: the power was out. “So this is how they’re going to steal it,” I thought. Power back on in half an hour. Day totally uneventful: mid day polling center had no line. I brought the poll workers left over Halloween Candy to pass out to voters.

    It makes me so sad to think how few people remember or learned about Shirley Chisholm. It makes me sadder to hear how few people know about Cynthia McKinney today, regardless of their political position.

    Part of my heart will be in Chicago tonight, but a good chunk is being reserved for a day when we elect someone who will better represent our interests as progressives. If it’s a woman and a person of color, well, we are long long overdue.

  12. Adam says:

    I live right here in Obamaland (Illinois). I will be voting tonight when I get off work (long after the state turns blue). The voting base of Illinois is 65-70% Democrat.

    Many of my coworkers have said that there have been long lines everywhere, but the climate has been calm. Many people wore T-Shirts with their respective political parties but I have been told there has been nothing but courtesy and mutual respect for the most part.

  13. nojojojo says:

    Easy 45-minute wait for me this morning at 9 a.m., in a mostly-black working-class neighborhood. The mood was festive, with people driving by and shouting “Obama!” every few minutes. The only weird thing was a “Republican Vote Monitor” who sat behind the poll volunteer while I was giving them my name; she glared at me like I was a terrorist, though she didn’t say anything. Guess I’m scary-looking. :)

  14. the angry black woman says:

    Drew,

    two words: Geraldine Ferraro. Look her up.

  15. stokes says:

    i voted for the first time today.

    i voted green- my family hates it- says that i wasted my vote. that i dont support black people or some bullshit like that.

    but it was so important to me to vote! i like mckinney and clemente a helluva lot better than i like obama/biden.

    besides, voting for two fellow brown womyn for pres/vp???

    how amazing.

  16. Maggie says:

    The Root has a guide up listing the 5 Things White People Should Not Do If Obama Wins, including:

    3. Don’t start crossing the street in order to walk next to a black person.

    President Obama is glad you support racial reconciliation, but he takes a hard line against jaywalking.

  17. the angry black woman says:

    lol Maggie!

    Here’s the list. It’s quite fun.

  18. Lexicality says:

    @ Aunti: I feel you on Sis. Chisholm. I meant to show “Unbought and Unbossed” but the time got away from me. I’ll have to try to bring it to people’s attention at some point soon.

    as far as McKinney, well, she is GPUSA, and they get little play nationally.

  19. BlackWomenBlowTheTrumpet.blogspot.com says:

    Hello there!!

    The news is just in…..OBAMA takes Ohio….and THAT is the state that determines the election now!

    BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA
    44th President of the United States

    Yesssss… in our lifetime!

  20. nojojojo says:

    I’m watching the BBC coverage. The popular vote is at 50% for Obama, 49% for McCain. WHY THE FUCK IS IT SO CLOSE?? Are we still that stupid as a country?!

  21. the angry black woman says:

    It’s almost 11 and polls are about to close in California. I am trying not to be too optimistic. I’ve had my hopes dashed before. But oh man, there is cause to hope.

  22. Drew says:

    I know Geraldine Ferraro. I meant if McCain had won, Palin would have been the first woman veep. Either way, my side lost. Congrats to all who voted for Obama. The best man won.

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