DeSoto resident Nydia Rios got her election day vote in just under the wire tonight. She was pulled to her polling place by the possibility of beer and wine sales in DeSoto, which she's against. Nydia Rios says, "It's bringing it in. It's making it more accessible to the high school children. More accessible to drunkenness around the neighborhood. I would prefer it's not here."
Both Sunnyvale and DeSoto had alcohol sales' issues on their ballots this election. Dallas County Election Administrator Bruce Sherbet expected voter turnout in those areas to be around 20%. That's far higher than the estimate for Dallas County overall, which was around 4-5% before final calculations Tuesday night.
In DeSoto, even with the added buzz over booze, Election Judge Dapheny Fain said about the traffic, "All day our polls open at 7am and it's been steady but slow."
In Irving, there were half the number of the usual polling places. It and other Dallas County cities had to consolidate because of budget cuts.
Dallas County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet said overall that didn't create many problems on election day. Sherbet said the low voter turnout could be attributed to a variety of things. Bruce Sherbet says, "It could be that the issues on the ballots just aren't inspiring them to turn out. There's no hot button issues on the ballot. There's no gambling, lottery, sports arena or high tax increase for them to get fired up to vote."
Bruce Sherbet says voter apathy could also be present, people who think their vote doesn't make a difference. The low voter turnout saddens voter Rosa Bellamy. She says, "It's our duty. I mean, can we complain if things don't change the way we want them to change if we don't take the time."
Bruce Sherbet says mail in and early ballots totaled about 15,000 in Dallas County. Earlier Tuesday, officials expected 20,000 people to hit the polls.
Both Sunnyvale and DeSoto had alcohol sales' issues on their ballots this election. Dallas County Election Administrator Bruce Sherbet expected voter turnout in those areas to be around 20%. That's far higher than the estimate for Dallas County overall, which was around 4-5% before final calculations Tuesday night.
In DeSoto, even with the added buzz over booze, Election Judge Dapheny Fain said about the traffic, "All day our polls open at 7am and it's been steady but slow."
In Irving, there were half the number of the usual polling places. It and other Dallas County cities had to consolidate because of budget cuts.
Dallas County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet said overall that didn't create many problems on election day. Sherbet said the low voter turnout could be attributed to a variety of things. Bruce Sherbet says, "It could be that the issues on the ballots just aren't inspiring them to turn out. There's no hot button issues on the ballot. There's no gambling, lottery, sports arena or high tax increase for them to get fired up to vote."
Bruce Sherbet says voter apathy could also be present, people who think their vote doesn't make a difference. The low voter turnout saddens voter Rosa Bellamy. She says, "It's our duty. I mean, can we complain if things don't change the way we want them to change if we don't take the time."
Bruce Sherbet says mail in and early ballots totaled about 15,000 in Dallas County. Earlier Tuesday, officials expected 20,000 people to hit the polls.
