Voting lines aren’t long in Alexandria, and more than 66% of the city’s registered voters have already cast their ballots in the 2024 general election.
As of noon, 17,813 ballots were cast across the city’s 32 precincts. There were also 47,967 voters who voted early. The city’s registrar predicts an 80% turnout.
Estela Herrera was undecided going into Election Day, but said she decided on voting for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris against former President Donald Trump.
“My gut tells me that Harris is a better person than Donald Trump,” Herrera said outside of Charles Houston Recreation Center in Old Town. “The Jan. 6 insurrection is what did it for me.
Republican Ken Wolfe handed out sample ballots outside the City Hall precinct. A resident since 1996, Wolfe said that the city needs more Republican representation and asked residents to support lone Republican City Council candidate Celianna Gunderson.
“I think that the bottom line is, were you better off four years ago than you are today?” Wolfe asked. “I’m thinking about the issues that Americans care — about a wide-open southern border which inflates everybody’s education costs because we have now millions of immigrants who are not here legally inside the public education system.”
Democratic City Council Member John Taylor Chapman spoke to voters outside Charles Houston Recreation Center. Chapman is running for his fifth three-year term, and said he and his team will try to visit every polling place before they close at 7 p.m.
“Regardless of where we stand on one issue or multiple issues or our party, we’re also residents of Alexandria,” Chapman said. “What we all think matters, and talking to more and more folks is what the goal of our campaign has been.”
There are six Council seats up for grabs, and Chapman is sharing the ballot with eight other candidates, including three Democratic incumbents, two School Board Members, two independents and a Republican.
Below are the 12 p.m. election count totals in Alexandria.
