Lines of voters keep some Clark County polling places open late

Lines of eager voters kept early polling locations across Clark County operating past their posted closing times on Friday, the last day of early voting.

The night-time ballot casting showed the county made good on its promise that everyone in line would be allowed to vote. That is, if they had the patience to wait for more than hour in some locations.

At 7 p.m., the polls’ official closing time at the Desert Breeze Community Center in the west valley, a line of some 200 people was still weaving through stanchions and volleyball nets positioned across the community center’s gymnasium floor.

Brenda Camp, a 51-year-old pharmacy technician, likened the experience to waiting for a popular amusement park ride. She spent more than an hour in line, but that’s far better than she believes she would fare on Election Day.

“This is a last-ditch effort so I don’t have to stand in longer lines on Nov. 6,” she said. “It’s going to be a lot worse. This is nothing.”

The wait proved too lengthy for others.

After waiting for about an hour, 21-year-old Stephanie Cisneros said she could wait until Tuesday to fulfill her mission of electing Democrats to Congress.

“I have time on Election Day, so I just felt like it wasn’t worth it right now,” she said after stepping out of line.

Some voters waited even longer outdoors at the Silverado Ranch Plaza shopping center in Henderson, where the line continued to grow even after location’s scheduled 8 p.m. closing time.

Todd Polsky, 37, said casting a ballot was worth the hour-and-a-half he waited.

“I just wanted to make sure that we expressed a better choice in our government right now,” he said.

At the nearby Galleria at Sunset shopping mall at around 8:50 p.m., last-minute voters were processed quickly, as poll workers urged shoppers to line up. The line disappeared by about 9:15 p.m.

Jane Magistrelli, a 39-year-old Kenya native voting in a U.S. election for the first time, said she was impressed that voting at the mall only took her about 20 minutes.

“It’s kind of like a well-coordinated thing,” she said. “I don’t know whether it was the people or the process, but something here was working.”

At multiple voting sites, parents pushed strollers or entertaining young children as they waited.

Jason Revzin, 40, said it was important to bring his son, Kingston, to the polls in Downtown Summerlin instead of hiring a babysitter for the night.

“He’s only 3, but I try to explain to him that we’re making important decisions, decisions for you and your future,” Revzin said.

Contact Michael Scott Davidson at sdavidson@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861. Follow @davidsonlvrj on Twitter. Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.