Early voting begins in PBC
In case of a long line, Joyce Mura brought a crime fiction novel to the first day of early voting.
Instead, the Boynton Beach resident was in and out of the early voting site at the Boynton Beach Civic Center within 10 minutes.
“I wanted to get it over with and out of the way,” she said of voting early. “Because I work part-time, I wasn’t sure when I’d be working on Election Day.”
Early voting started at 10 a.m. Monday in Palm Beach County for the Aug. 28 primary election. Fifteen voting locations will be open until Aug. 26 for early voters to cast ballots. Early voting also started in Miami-Dade County; Broward voters can vote early starting Saturday.
Before early voting sites even opened their doors, 21,736 of the 133,059 Palm Beach voters who received mail-in ballots had cast their votes, according to state data.
The election features primaries for governor, Congress, and state House and Senate. Nonpartisan races for circuit and county court judges and school board are also on the ballot.
Two positions on Boca Raton’s City Council, including the mayor, are up for election.
Come rain or shine, Mayor Scott Singer was outside the Boca library downtown encouraging voters to support him.
When the morning torrential
downpour let up, Singer dried off his table and greeted every person who walked by. In the first hour and a half, he spoke with about 24 voters, he said.
“I think they came because I encouraged them to come early,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of familiar faces from my canvassing.”
Walter Moser, a Boca Raton resident, ran through the rain from the library’s parking lot to the polling place. Moser, 64, said he has lived in the city for 44 years and hasn’t been happy with the current council’s stance on development.
He said he hoped his neighbors would share his enthusiasm and vote early.
“I want to get in, get out and don’t have to worry about lines or rushing,” he said.
Although President Donald Trump isn’t on the ballot, he was on the mind of voters.
John Wells, a Boynton Beach resident, said a candidate’s affiliation with the president played a role in what he thought of them.
“If they didn’t go with Trump, I voted for them,” he said. His vote in the Democratic primary for governor was for Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, he said.
Chris Cummings, who recently moved to Boynton Beach from California where he owns a soccer team, said he that while he hasn’t been happy with the way Trump has presented himself his economic policies were beneficial to business owners like himself.
Democratic governor candidate and former Miami Beach mayor Philip Levine encouraged voters — and railed against Trump — at the West Delray early voting site on Monday morning.
Because Florida is a closed primary state, voters registered as independent or no party affiliation couldn’t vote in any party races.
Among voters with only judges on their ballots was Boynton Beach resident Otto Spielbichler.
He wasn’t happy that he didn’t get a voice on most races.
“I’ve been here a number of years and no one can give me a good reason about that,” he said.
The Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office did not
comment on how the first day went or how many people voted. Typically, the numbers are available after a day or two.