LEANDER, Texas — In Williamson County, voters at some polling locations waited in long lines for more than an hour to cast their ballots on Election Day.
There was a steady stream of voters all day, showing up to make their choices for the future of the nation, state, county and cities.
“One of the greatest things about being an American is you get actually to vote for people you want to,” Cameron Cresman said. “Everyone gets their free will.”
In most county polling locations, voters could vote and get in and out in 15 minutes or less. But there were a handful of places with wait times over 15 minutes, like the Round Rock Randalls, Georgetown City Hall, Hutto ISD Administration Building and the Wilco Hutto Annex.
The longest wait time in the county was at the Leander Public Library. The county said voters should expect the line to be at least 45 minutes long.
Voters who cast their ballot at the library told KVUE they waited an hour or up to an hour-and-a-half to vote.
Voters started lining up before the polls opened on Tuesday morning, and that line has been steady throughout the day. It snaked out the door and wrapped around the side of the building.
“The line wrapped around behind the building, so I was just standing around,” Aaron Klaser said. “I thought there would be a lot more animosity between people, but everybody seems to be kind of content.”
“The poll workers are a little bit feisty, making sure everyone is doing the right thing, but I think it was good,” Chelse Hall said.
For Hall, Klaser and others, the long line was well worth it to have a chance to vote in this election.
“There is something special about voting on Election Day,” Hall said. “It is a tradition.”
“It is the energy,” Klaser said. “It is the energy of being here and feeling like you are making a difference.”
As of 4:30 p.m., county election officials said more than 38,000 people had voted in person on Tuesday.
Since Williamson County participates in the Countywide Polling Place Program (CWPP), voters could vote at any polling place. Residents could cast their ballots at any of the 82 voting locations within the county as long as they’re registered to vote in the county.
If you are registered, all polling places across Texas will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Here is a list of Election Day polling places in Central Texas.
As long as you are in line by 7 p.m., you will be able to vote. For info on what you need to bring with you, click here. To brush up on some other polling place rules, click here.