Harris County breaks record for first day of early voting

Hundreds of people wait in line to cast their ballot at the Fiesta Mart off Kirby Drive on Oct. 24, the first day of early voting. Hundreds of people wait in line to cast their ballot at the Fiesta Mart off Kirby Drive on Oct. 24, the first day of early voting. Photo: Michael Ciaglo, Houston Chronicle Photo: Michael Ciaglo, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 66 Caption Close Harris County breaks record for first day of early voting 1 / 66 Back to Gallery

After more than 18 months of exhaustive media coverage, two grueling nomination fights and three combative debates, voters in Harris County and across Texas lined up in record numbers Monday to cast early ballots in the presidential election.

Monday's turnout of 67,471 in-person voters shattered the county record of 47,093 set in 2012 for the first day of early voting. Another 61,543 mail ballots had been returned as of Monday, bringing the total number of early voters so far to 129,014 in Texas' most populous county.

Records were also broken by substantial margins in counties such as Dallas and Tarrant, which reported first-day turnouts of about 43,000 each. Bexar and Travis counties reported about 30,000 first-day voters apiece.

For many in Harris County and across the state, a complex mix of factors drew them to the polls on opening day in an historic, bitterly fought presidential campaign between Democrat Hillary Clinton, the first female nominee, and Republican Donald Trump, the billionaire businessman who has made mass deportations of undocumented immigrants the hallmark of his campaign. The contest has been so negative and seemingly endless that some in line may simply have wanted to fulfill their duties as citizens and move on.

On HoustonChronicle.com: See who's turning out to vote early in Harris County

"We just want to get it over with," Sam Tabb said as he stood in line at a polling station in Pasadena. "We will be glad when this whole thing is over. It's just been a real zoo. In my lifetime, it's probably the worst election ever."

Brandy Holmes, a 31-year-old engineer who said she'd marked Monday on her calendar weeks ago, echoed that sentiment. "Let's just get this over with."

Harris County Clerk Stan Stanart said he'd expected a record-breaking turnout of as many as 55,000 voters, but that even he was surprised by the number who actually came out.

Stanart said his office did receive numerous complaints about long lines at early-voting spots. He recommended that those planning to vote this week check the turnout numbers by location at HarrisVotes.com and head to a spot with low turnout to avoid long lines.

Elections officials will be sending extra laptops to select locations on Tuesday in order to speed up the process, Stanart said.

READ MORE: Where do Clinton, Trump actually stand on the issues

The lines started forming early and stayed long throughout the day, snaking around buildings at polling places at several locations. By the afternoon, Harris County election officials said voters were casting 6,000 votes per hour. As the polls closed, people were still in line at some places.

"This is tremendous," said Ronald McCulloch, a veteran poll worker and staff election judge for Stanart, as he watched the queue wrapped around the inside of the Trini Mendenhall Community Center in Northwest Houston. "I've never seen anything like this before."

He recalled long lines at polling places, but not on Day One of early voting.

At the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center on West Gray, typically among the county's most popular polling spots, a line of voters stretched out the door and across the patio even before the doors opened at 8 a.m.

James Tan, a 62-year-old teacher's aide, dropped his children off at Carnegie Vanguard High School a few blocks away, then drove to the early-voting spot he'd patronized for 15 years. He was surprised to find the parking lot full, so he parked across the street and waited in a line longer than he'd ever seen there.

READ MORE: Houston Trump fans fear a 'rigged' election, too

Many voters said they turned out early because they felt the stakes were too high.

"If this polling place is any indication of what the others are doing, we're going to be looking at a great turnout," said state Sen. Sylvia Garcia, who had gathered at the location with a cohort of local Democratic officials.

Another recalled the heavy turnout for Barack Obama's historic 2008 presidential campaign. A record 15 million-plus Texans are registered to vote this year, up from 13.6 million in 2012.

"It's been like when Obama first ran," said John Smith, a safety representative at a refinery, as he stood in line at the Northeast Multi-Service Center on Tidwell Road.

In Pasadena, dozens of people were already in line when a poll worker opened the doors of the Kyle Chapman Annex and hollered, "Good morning Texas!" An hour later, hundreds had lined up — a surprise to Pasadena voter Cathy Crate.

"I always early-vote because I don't like standing in line, but there's a line and this is awesome," she said. "This is great. This is inspiring."

Crate said the Nov. 8 general election amounted to "a choice between freedom and socialism."

READ MORE: Texas congressman says "sometimes a lady needs to be told when she's being nasty"

Other Republican voters stressed the importance of electing a president who would nominate conservatives to the U.S. Supreme Court. Contractor Calvin Frank, 54, said he felt like "our classic American values are at stake."

By 10:30 a.m., retired minister Michael Bingham arrived at the Chapman annex to find almost 20 vehicles waiting to park and a line of voters that he estimated would take him "five hours" to get through, so he decided to cast his ballot another day.

Voters who identified themselves as Democrats said their primary motivation for turning out early was to keep Trump out of the White House — a possibility they repeatedly described as "dangerous."

Others cited a variety of apprehensions, mostly centered on the presidential race.

Kathy Newsom, 63, a retired legal secretary, said securing Social Security topped her list of concerns. Teresa Velazquez, a 51-year-old homemaker, said it was increasing funding for schools and teachers. Mark Riner, 26-year-old student, wants to see better management of the national debt. Keuna Morris, a 22-year-old student, said she wants to see a reduction in gun violence, especially random public shootings. Richard Garza, a 62-year-old chemist, called public safety and border security his chief concern.

The sense of urgency even drew 83-year-old Cecilia Covarruias out to vote for her first time. Born in Texas to an American mother and a Mexican father, she said she felt that people of Hispanic heritage would be treated badly under a Trump administration.

Linda Andersson, a 69-year-old retired teacher, said she stopped watching television because she didn't want to hear about it any more. She made up her mind to vote for Hillary Clinton about a year ago and described the continuing election coverage as "annoying."

"Let's just do this thing," she said while waiting in line.

READ MORE: New UH poll bodes well for Harris County Democrats

Local Democratic leaders, eager to see the predictions for a local Democratic surge materialize, held a news conference Monday morning at the West Grey center.

At the press conference, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee cited the historically narrow gap between Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton in Texas, now within the margin of error in several recent polls, and a reason for Democrats to turn out to vote.

"We can win this," the Democratic congresswoman said.

Former Houston Mayor Annise Parker also told the crowd, "I think this is the year that Harris County turns blue."

The latest polling from the University of Houston has shown a surge in local Democratic voters, which pollsters said could amount to a significant leftward swing for the region after this election.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.