Voter Turnout And Exit Polling in East Lyme

Billy Hahnel of Salem is nothing is not eager. He was at the East Lyme High School polling site at 5 a.m. this morning waiting for people to arrive and the polls to open.

Hahnel is asking voters to participate in exit polls for Edison Research, reporting in three times a day with voter information and numbers that media outlets will use to get a sense of which way the vote is going.

The survey includes questions about demographics, voters gender, race, age, education level, marital status, and employment, and asks how voters feel about the economy, the housing market, and which issues are most important to them.

For first time voter Nicole Foxx-Diaz, 18, who registered as an independent, the biggest issues were education, college funding, and jobs, "since I can't even get one," she said. 

The political questions were, if anything, more pointed.

"Did you just vote for president?" is the first question, which is followed by:

"Which best describes your vote for president today?"

• I strongly favor my candidate 
• I like my candidate but with reservations
• I dislike the other candidate

A number of voters surveyed by Patch said they weren't terribly keen on either candidate. 

"I didn't like either one," said Jennifer Burnett, who was voting for the first time in a General Election today, having turned 18 after the last Presidential Election in 2008. 

"It's not like they were very good candidates," Jennifer's mother, Carol Peterson agreed. 

The one question regarding the highly contentious U.S. Senate race between Democrat Chris Murphy and Republican Linda McMahon was also interesting. Of all the things the survey could have asked, the question was: 

"Which candidate for U.S. Senate do you think has higher ethical standards?"

• Only Murphy
• Only McMahon
• Both 
• Neither

The aggressive and often negative campaigning by the two candidates didn't sit well with many people and the barrage of political mailings didn't go down well either. 

"I'm sick and tired of the phone calls and the junk mail," said Kirk Peterson of East Lyme. "It doesn't swing my vote. I care about what the person stands for. I wasn't pleased with either party." 

Voter Turnout Is High So Far

As of noon, Hahnel had about 200 surveys but voting at the polling site was brisk. Hahnel conducted exit polls during the last presidential election in Old Saybrook but said the East Lyme polling place had been far busier this election.

East Lyme election officials also said that, based on how many people had been going to the polls so far, voter turnout was shaping up to be even larger than it was in the 2008 Presidential Election, possibly as high as 80 percent. That's significant because 2008 set voter turnout records in the state. 

The fact that East Lyme's First Selectman Paul Formica is running for the 2nd District Congressional seat against Democratic incumbent Joe Courtney, however, may be bringing more local people to the polls than usual this election. 

Formica is spending the day trying to cover the sprawling 2nd District. He started out at East Lyme Community Center at 6 a.m., then hit Waterford, Groton, Norwich, Lebanon, Tolland and Enfield by noon. This afternoon he's in Vernon, Bolton, Colchester, East Haddam, Madison, Westbrook, and will end up in Old Saybrook at 7:30 p.m.

He'll be at his Flanders Fish Market and Restaurant on Chesterfield Road in Flanders this evening to await results, which barring any mishaps should be coming in around 9 to 9:30 p.m.