Voters in Miami-Dade flock to early-voting polls

Voters across Miami-Dade County took advantage of the last day of early voting Sunday, waiting in hours-long lines to avoid having to cast a ballot on election day.

At Miami City Hall, Sharon Rumph was one of several people who showed up at about 4:30 p.m., just ahead of the 5 p.m. closing.

``I was hoping for a shorter line,'' said Rumph, who purposely waited until after the Miami Dolphins game ended, thinking the crowd would be thinner. ``But it's worth waiting.''

As of Sunday evening, Miami-Dade was still tabulating numbers of early voters. In Broward, where voting ended on Saturday, a total of 85,737 people cast their ballots during the special two-week period, the elections department said.

The busiest poll proved to be the Northwest Regional Library, where 10,742 people voted.

Now, anyone who did not vote early must go to their assigned precincts on Election Day.

``We ask all voters review their sample ballot and make their decisions prior to going to the polls in order to accommodate everyone as swiftly and smoothly as possible,'' Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Lester Sola said.

Arne Themmen had to vote on Sunday. He said he couldn't wait until Tuesday because of work. He waited about an hour and 10 minutes at City Hall to cast his ballot. ``I actually think you get through regular voting quicker,'' he said.

Jackie and Rick Zelman said the process was long, but smooth. ``We had nothing going on and we wanted to make sure we got our votes in,'' Jackie Zelman said.

Ted Hartshorn, who lives near City Hall, said he had checked earlier on the line, but it was longer. At 4:30, he knew he didn't have a choice but to wait out. ``It's a shame the line is so long,'' Hartshorn said .

``But what are you going to do?''

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