Voting in Durham and Middlefield on Pace to Meet State's 80 Percent Goal

Updated 5:15 p.m.

As of 4 p.m., 2,794 Durham voters have cast ballots in Tuesday's election, or 56% of registered voters.

Updated 3:00 p.m.

As of 3 p.m., 1,505 Middlefield (and Rockfall!) voters have cast ballots in Tuesday's Election. That's 46% compared to 50.6% in 2008, so far. The busiest time to vote, according to election officials, will be between 4-6 p.m.

Updated 12:50 p.m.

According to the Residents of the Town of Durham Facebook page 1,963 voters have cast ballots as of 12 p.m. Tuesday

Updated 10:30 a.m.

Here are some Election Day quotes and factoids that I found interesting:

"It's been busy. When we opened they were out the door. It's nice to see that much interest," said Durham poll moderator Phyllis Naples-Valenti.

"Durham has one of the larger polling places," said Durham poll moderator Lou Battapaglia. Despite being a small town, all 5115 registered voters cast ballots in one place, Korn School. In Hamden, for example, voters are split up into as many as 10 districts, the largest polling place being about 3,600 voters, he said.

There were about 20 people lined up to vote at 6 a.m. Tuesday morning in Middlefield, according to poll workers. One voter waiting in line was overheard saying, "I don't remember the line ever being this long."

Updated 10:20 a.m.

As of 9 a.m., 536 Middlefield voters had cast a ballot in the election, putting the town slightly ahead of the turnout in 2008.

In Durham, 1294 voters had gone to the polls by 9:45 a.m.

Original story

Good morning, and welcome to Election Day 2012!

Today, Durham and Middlefield residents go to the polls to choose a president, a U.S. Senator and a U.S. Representative from the 3rd District. Durham voters will also elect a state Senator from the 12th and 34th Districts and a state Representative from the 101st and 86th Districts.

In Middlefield, voters will choose a state Senator from the 13th District and a state Representative from the 82nd District.

See the attached PDF files of Sample Ballots from both towns.

See below for information on where to go to cast your ballot and the list of candidates. We've also included how Durham and Middlefield voted in 2008, the year of the last presidential election, and in 2010, the last mid-term election.

Read it over, then visit your local polling station between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. to make your voice heard! And be sure to check back with Patch for updates throughout the day, including the announcement of the winners as soon as votes are tallied.

Polling Stations

• Durham Korn Elementary School, 144 Pickett Lane
• Middlefield Middlefield Community Center 405 Main Street

How Middlefield Voted in 2008 (83% Turnout)

(D=Democrat; R=Republican; G=Green; I=Independent; WF=Working Families; CL=Connecticut for Lieberman)

PRESIDENT

• Obama-Biden (D) — 1452 votes
• McCain-Palin (R) — 1079 votes
• Nader-Gonzalez — 34 votes

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 3rd DISTRICT

• Rosa DeLauro (D) — 1609 votes
• Bo Itshaky (R) — 583
• Rosa DeLauro (WF) — 179
• Ralph Ferrucci (G) — 85

13th SENATE DISTRICT

• Thomas Gaffey (D) — 1464 votes
• Tim Lenox (R) — 771
• Thomas Gaffey (WF) — 138

100th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• Raymond C. Kalinowski (R) — 1324 votes
• Matthew Lesser (D) — 1057
• Matthew Lesser (WF) — 95

How Durham Voted in 2008 (83% Turnout)

(D=Democrat; R=Republican; G=Green; I=Independent; WF=Working Families; CL=Connecticut for Lieberman)

PRESIDENT

• Obama-Biden (D) — 2188 votes
• McCain-Palin (R) — 1893 votes
• Nader-Gonzalez — 79 votes

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 2nd DISTRICT

• Joe Courtney (D) — 1601 votes
• Sean Sullivan (R) — 1129
• G. Scott Deshefy (G) — 65
• Joe Courtney (WF) — 59

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 3rd DISTRICT

• Rosa DeLauro (D) — 672 votes
• Bo Itshaky (R) — 330
• Rosa DeLauro (WF) — 37
• Ralph Ferrucci (G) — 31

12th SENATE DISTRICT

• Edward Meyer (D) — 2281 votes
• Ryan Suerth (R) — 1559

100th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• Raymond C. Kalinowski (R) — 2463 votes
• Matthew Lesser (D) — 1491
• Matthew Lesser (WF) — 99

How Middlefield Voted in 2010 (67% Turnout)

(D=Democrat; R=Republican; G=Green; I=Independent; L=Libertarian; WF=Working Families; CL=Connecticut for Lieberman; SA=Socialist Action)

U.S. SENATE

• Richard Blumenthal (D) — 1047 votes
• Linda McMahon (R) — 949
• Richard Blumenthal (WF) — 67
• Warren B. Mosler (I) — 26
• Dr. John Mertens (CL) — 15

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 3rd DISTRICT

• Rosa DeLauro (D) — 1171 votes
• Jerry Labriola Jr. (R) — 796
• Rosa DeLauro (WF) — 81
• Charles A. Pillsbury (G) — 19

13th SENATE DISTRICT

• Thomas Gaffey (D) — 1070 votes
• Len Suzio (R) — 921
• Thomas Gaffey (WF) — 55

100th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• John Szewczyk (R) — 1017 votes
• Matthew Lesser (D) — 935
• Matthew Lesser (WF) — 59
• John Szewczyk (I) — 34
• John Szewczyk (CL) — 31
• John Szewczyk (L) — 19

How Durham Voted in 2010 (69% Turnout)

(D=Democrat; R=Republican; G=Green; I=Independent; L=Libertarian; WF=Working Families; CL=Connecticut for Lieberman; SA=Socialist Action)

U.S. SENATE

• Richard Blumenthal (D) — 1654 votes
• Linda McMahon (R) — 1668
• Richard Blumenthal (WF) — 73
• Warren B. Mosler (I) — 36
• Dr. John Mertens (CL) — 15

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 2nd DISTRICT

• Joe Courtney (D) — 1254 votes
• Janet Peckinpaugh (R) — 1141
• Joe Courtney (WF) — 55
• G. Scott Deshefy (G) — 24

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 3rd DISTRICT

• Rosa DeLauro (D) — 474 votes
• Jerry Labriola Jr. (R) — 393
• Rosa DeLauro (WF) — 28
• Charles A. Pillsbury (G) — 14

12th SENATE DISTRICT

• Edward Meyer (D) — 1452 votes
• Lisa Davenport (R) — 1901

100th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• John Szewczyk (R) — 1906 votes
• Matthew Lesser (D) — 1345
• Matthew Lesser (WF) — 61
• John Szewczyk (I) — 58
• John Szewczyk (CL) — 41
• John Szewczyk (L) — 40

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