When polls opened at 6:30 a.m., Steven Hannah, a poll worker at Adam Hall in Auburn Township, saw the longest voting lines he’s ever seen in Geauga County.
“These are the longest lines I’ve ever seen,” Hannah said.
The lines stretched into the parking lot late into the morning, and led up to a steady stream of voters in the afternoon.
The long lines were due in part to a new system of arranging voters in alphabetical order instead of by precinct, a statewide change put in place by Secretary of State Jon Husted before the November election.
Many voters were unhappy with it, including a woman in Bainbridge Township, who asked to remain anonymous.
“I have voted here for 42 years and this is the longest I’ve ever had to wait,” she said.
Although in past elections heavy turnout has favored Democratic candidates, this year’s turnout seems to have tipped Ohio’s election towards Republican Donald Trump.
As of late Tuesday night, he was the projected winner of the state, and he won Geauga County with 29,577 votes — almost 60 percent of votes cast in the presidential race.
The strong Republican showing was evident in local races, with GOP victories in State Representative and State Senate races.
Incumbent State Sen. John Eklund, R-Munson Township, was gracious in victory, thanking the volunteers and supporters who worked to make his win possible.
“It renews my sense of responsibility to do everything I can to serve the people,” Eklund said of his election to a second term in the Ohio Senate.
He also thanked his opponent, Wiley Runnestrand, from Kent, for running a principled campaign.
State Rep. Sarah LaTourette, R-Chester Township, defeated her Democratic opponent, Terri McIntee, of Burton, decisively, but McIntee was not discouraged.
“For me it was a nice experience,” McIntee said of her time campaiging and traveling the area. “I liked getting to meet a lot of people and I formed a lot of good relationships with people that I’m going to continue to work on.”
McIntee intends to continue to work with some of the communities she has engaged in her campaign on issues of economic development and legislative involvement.
For vote totals and other election results, visit http://eresults.co.geauga.oh.us/.
