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LIVE BLOG: Election Day

August 26, 2008

(This is an archive of a live election blog from August 26.)

This live election blog will be updated as NorthEscambia.com provides complete election coverage. We are now providing live election results under the “LIVE ELECTION RESULTS” story in the left column of the site. Click here for the results story.

(10:45 p.m). This is the last post on my live election blog. It’s been a long day. I’ve spent the last hour on the phone with the candidates, both winners and losers. Find out what they had to say, and who ate the most pie, Wednesday morning on NorthEscambia.com. Thanks for joining us tonight. We really appreciate you turned to us for your election coverage.

(9:50) There will be a new sheriff in town. And a new school board member in District 5. And Mike Whitehead is headed home. And…there’s a lot more. See our results story from the front page. I’m on the phone now with the winners and losers…check NorthEscambia.com in the morning for complete reactions from the candidate. If you enjoyed our coverage tonight, tell a friend. I know there are lot of new people here tonight from several blogs in Pensacola. For those of you that don’t know NorthEscambia.com, this is how we do things…fast and fair. Come back and see us again. And thanks for reading NorthEscambia.com!

(9:30) 84 of 90 precincts in now. Morgan is still ahead of McNesby for sheriff. Incumbent Gindl is in third place in District 5 School Board race. A few more precincts to go, and we’ll know if there will be some new faces in Escambia County government. It’s close one for the Democratic nod for District 5 Commission. Right now, just 14 votes separate front runner Jim Barnett front John Hartman. Stay tuned.

(9:20) Still awaiting the Escambia Supervisor of Elections Office to issue the latest county. We are still here, and still live. The next update should big one.

(9:10 p.m.) To North Escambia’s north, Atmore Mayor Howard Shell has won his fifth term as mayor of that city. Shell, by the way, grew up in Walnut Hill where his family operated a small grocery store along Highway 97. So he’s a hometown North Escambia boy.

(8:57 p.m.) Could Sheriff Ron McNesby be on the way out of office? With 66 of 90 precincts reporting, he has just 42.6% of the vote compared to David Morgans 57.4%. Of course, this could change quickly as precincts favorable to McNesby are counted. More live updates coming soon.

(8:30 p.m.) 53 of 90 precinct reporting. Kevin White leads the Republican District 5 commission race. John Hartman and Jim Barnett and neck and neck. That will be an interesting race. School board…incumbent Pete Gindl is in third place behind Bill Slayton and Tom Harrell. The night is young. Check back for more live results.

(8:22 p.m.) New election results posted, 36 of 90 precincts reporting in the county. I’ve improved from text to a graph for each race, making it easier to read. It load just a little slow on a dialup connection, but I believe it will be OK if you’ll just give it 5-10 seconds to load.

(Updated 8:00 p.m.) We are now providing live election results under the “LIVE ELECTION RESULTS” story in the left column. As the night goes along, we’ll start to break out some of the District 5 races into a separate story, and offer a little commentary. Keep check back tonight.

(Updated 7:00 p.m.) The polls close at 7:00 in North Escambia. Turnout has been reported to be very low across the area, ranging from 10 to 15 percent. There are just 792 registered voters at the Byrneville Community Center precinct, but several candidates spared no expense on making sure the precinct had plenty of signs out front. (Pictured above, submitted photo by Heather Leonard). We’ll begin our live election coverage here on NorthEscambia.com about 8:00 when results begin to come in.

(Updated 6:00 p.m.) I finally made it by my precinct in Walnut Hill to vote. The turnout here is low. Only about 13 percent of the 1,340 registered voters in the precinct have voted. Polls close in one hour.

(4.40 p.m.) Voter turnout is still light around North Escambia, with the polling places we visited in the Bratt and Oak Grove nearly empty this afternoon. The “voter rush” ordinarily starts about 4:30, but that’s not the reported case around the area. At the precinct located at Oak Grove Baptist Church (pictured bottom) dozens of political signs lined the highway. But catching our attention was this sign for “Your Best Choice…Jesus Christ”.

(3:30 p.m.) Traffic on the roads around North Escambia increases in the afternoon as moms, dads and others pick children up from school. Many of those people are stopping by to vote on their way home, increasing voter turnout. The flow of voters as North Escambia precincts should only increase as the hour gets later as people get off work and head back to their homes here in North Escambia. Oh…and the sun in still out. You can’t use the weather as an excuse not to vote.

(1:30 p.m.) A quick lunch…the number of voters increased during the lunch hour at many precincts in District 5. That’s a usual occurrence on election day as people vote during their lunch break or when they are back with their spouse around lunch. Voter turnout around the area is still being reported as low to moderate. Surprising, considering that we are voting on a commissioner, school board member and sheriff. Those offices usually bring people out to the polls. As for the accident mentioned below on Highway 29, the roadway is once again open.

(11:55 a.m.) If the area of Highway 29 and 9½ mile is on your way to vote in the southern part of District 5, or just in your plans during the noon hour, head another direction. There’s a major accident in that area that has traffic blocked.

(11:50 a.m.) Don’t forget that if you voted at the fire department in Cantonment or Molino in the past, you are headed to a different polling place today. The Molino precinct has moved from the Molino Volunteer Fire Department to the Barrineau Park Community Center. The folks that did vote at the Cantonment Volunteer Fire Department should not head to the Quintette Community Center on Quintette Lane. This has caused a little confusion this morning, but no major problems reported.

(10:55 a.m.) Slow, but a go. That’s a word from precincts around North Escambia. Many precincts are reporting a low voter turn out this morning. Most of the time, it’s no line, no real waiting. That is expected to change later this afternoon as people get off work, so you are encouraged to vote now if you can. The weather has been great too…no rain in the area this morning.

(9:30 a.m.) Looks like the weather might be a little better today. The National Weather Service just canceled the flash flood watch that was in effect for today. Fay’s leftovers are finally moving away from our area. The sun’s out, and things are looking, well, a little brighter. There’s still a chance of rain today, but most of it should be this afternoon. Get out and vote now if you want to avoid the rain.

(8:40 a.m.) A little excitement at the Walnut Hill precinct with the fire department, ambulance, sheriff’s department and LifeFlight….Authorities landed LifeFlight near the Walnut Hill Community Center (a.k.a. Ruritan Club) this morning as people voted inside. The helicopter was transporting someone from a nearby home that was suffering from a medical condition.

(7:05 a.m.) The polls are now open in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. They will be open until 7:00 tonight.

Comments

One Response to “LIVE BLOG: Election Day”

glen harris on August 26th, 2008 5:46 pm

i sure hope jimmy barnett,wins the county district #5 county commissioner seat,today.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under Blog