`I was determined'
Thousands brave weather to vote early
The rain didn't stop them. Neither did the piercing wind.
Voters bundled into coats and masks and clung to umbrellas as an early morning storm in the Oklahoma City metro area dared them to give up plans to vote early on Thursday.
Oklahoma is still reeling from an ice storm that left more than 200,000 without power this week.
Regardless, 50,200 Oklahomans cast their ballots in person by 5 p.m. on the state's first day of early voting, the Oklahoma State Election Board reported. The state has already blown past 2016 absentee voting by nearly 39,000 with 292,073 mailin and early ballots counted.
In-person absentee voting continues from 8 a. m. to 6 p. m. Friday, and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday in all counties of the state. Mailed absentee ballots will be accepted until 7 p.m. Nov. 3.
Pam Curran, of south Oklahoma City, said she waited 45 minutes “in the wind and the cold” to get inside the Moore Norman Technology Center's South Pennsylvania Campus and another 45 minutes to cast her ballot. She arrived about 10:45 a.m. to vote in Cleveland County.
“I lived in North Dakota, so this is nothing,” she said of the weather. “This is no big deal.”
Curran said it was important to vote in person.
“I was looking forward to this. It was on my schedule to do today,” she said. “It's my right to do this.”
Brian Bediako, 24, came straight from a 12- hour
shift at a local hospital to the Oklahoma County Election Board, where voters had been waiting in line since 5:30 a.m.
“I feel like there are many things that need changes,” Bediako said as he neared the front of the line. “Changes will not happen unless I actually put in the effort. So, that's why I'm out here after the night shift.”
Shortly before 8 a.m., he joined a line of cars stretching from NE 50 to the county election board, 4201 N Lincoln. A 30-minute wait in traffic turned into an hour and a half standing in line.
As torrential rain poured, Lynn Barnes, 68, offered Bediako shelter under her umbrella. Like many voters enduring lengthy delays, the two strangers spent the 90-minute wait chatting and getting to know each other.
The line had wrapped around the back of the building, but neither Barnes nor Bediako was deterred.
“I'm 68 years old, and my voice is important,” Barnes said. “I was determined no matter what the hardship to continue on and make my voice heard.”
Bradley Sebastian, 42, brought a folding chair to the Oklahoma County Election Board. He expected a wait.
As Sebastian voted for the first time in Oklahoma, he noted the early voting process was much easier in Austin, Texas, where he lived until a few months ago.
In Austin, residents had 2 1/2 weeks to vote early and several polling locations to choose from.
“There's only two early polling stations in this county, which seems a little crazy for the amount of people who live here," Sebastian said. “I have to say, this is not a great system.”
Oklahoma County — population 797,434 — operates a second early voting location at Edmond Church of Christ. Nearly 4,000 county residents voted in person by 5 p.m. Thursday.
Nearly 240,000 Oklahomans sent absentee ballots by mail, including more than 75,000 residents of Oklahoma County.
Cleveland County, which had 27,680 mailed ballots, also opened two early voting stations, where more than 4,100 residents voted by 5 p.m. Thursday.
As of 1 p. m., the Cleveland County sheriff's office reported “no problems” at the county election board in Norman and the Moore Norman Technology Center in south Oklahoma City, spokeswoman Joy Hampton said.
“There was one minor complaint, a woman didn't want to put her mask on,” Hampton told The Oklahoman. “But she complied.”
Hampton called both voting events “peaceful and well-organized.”
Laura Harjo, of Norman, and her 21- year- old daughter voted Friday morning at the Cleveland County Election Board in Norman. They arrived at 8:15 a.m. and stood in line for about 90 minutes. Once inside, the wait was about 10 minutes.
Harjo, 51, a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, said it was well worth the wait, despite the cold and rain.