Afternoon Update: Polls Slow on Election Day

As expected by experts, low turnout was reported throughout the day at polling places across the Levittown region.

The polls opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 8 p.m.

Bristol Borough

Small lines were spotted Tuesday morning in the North Ward and West Ward.

By late morning, officials in the North Ward said they had over 100 votes cast in the ward of roughly 650 Republicans and Democrats, who are the only people allowed to vote in the state’s primary election.

Candidates were also seen talking with potential voters throughout the day at borough polling places.

Bristol Township

Polls in across the township were reporting light turnout.

At  James Buchanan Elementary School on Haines Road, election officials said 77 of 1,068 eligible voters had cast their ballot by late afternoon.

The story was similar at Emerson Elementary School where Judge of Elections Sandra Cooper called turnout “slow.” At 4 p.m., 108 out of 1151 voters had come in.

Officials said some minor problems with new poll workers were reported early in the day at the Township Municipal Complex. However, the problems were resolved by last afternoon. Out of the two districts that vote in the building, 200 people had signed in as of 4 p.m. The predominantly liberal districts have 1880 voters able to cast their decision.

Falls Township

With several school board positions and a  seat on the Board of Supervisors up for grabs, turnout was light across the township.

District 1-6, which votes at Eleanor Roosevelt Elementary School, had 124 of 1100 eligible voters on it’s sign-in sheet by 3:30 p.m.

Districts 1-3 and 1-3 also vote at the school and reported turnout of 3.5 percent and 11 percent respectively.

Election officials at Penn Valley Elementary School, which holds the districts for Levittown’s Thornridge and North Park sections, reported “sporadic” turnout.

Voter ID was not an issue like in the 2012 general election one election official at Penn Valley told LevittownNow.com. She said voters openly displayed their identification and were not as skeptical about the procedure as in November. Though a law was passed last year, no identification is needed to vote due to the fact the case is still in state courts.

Langhorne Borough

Turnout at the Pennwood Library – the borough of 1,600 resident’s only polling spot – saw 72 voters by mid-afternoon, officials said. The polling place was offering refreshments.

Democrat John Krimmel and Republican Joseph Taylor, the only candidates for mayor of the borough, both stood outside the polling place.

Langhorne Manor & Penndel Boroughs

Light turnout was reported in both communities.

Middletown Township

Turnout by afternoon across the township was very light.

At Neshaminy High School, where two voting districts cast their ballots, only 132 people out of over 2,000 able voters took part in the election.

“This is lower than I’ve seen in the four years that I’ve been doing this,” Judge of Elections for District Upper 2 Robert Norum said. He said chuckled when he said they had three voters at one time in the morning.

Judge of Elections Robert Worthington, who was stationed at Carl Sandberg Elementary School, said by 2:45 p.m. they had 41 out of 704 voters cast their choice.

Tullytown

More than a dozen candidates and their supporters sat outside the borough hall building on Main Street courting those coming to vote at the community’s only polling place.

The tense atmosphere could be felt as candidates took jabs at one another at the front doors.

Jennifer Cumberland, judge of elections for the borough, said that 316 people out of roughly 1,300 eligible voters came to the polls by 3:45 p.m.

She added that the “normal little issues” had populated the day, but no major problems were reported.

Throughout the Evening

Almost all the election officials LevittownNow.com spoke with said turnout would likely increase by a small amount as voters finished work and their evening meals.