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This morning Staci Quinton headed for the polls looking like she was on her way to the sand, sun and surf. With a collapsible lawn chair, her shades and a bag of snacks in tow, Quinton was ready for the long haul.
Voters across the country have had to brave long lines for today’s historic election. And the scene this morning at the voting station on Pico Boulevard in South Los Angeles was no different. A line of more than 200 voters extended down the block and around the corner. But all patiently waited, chatting about what results the day would bring and bonding over their candidate of choice. By 9:00 a.m., Quinton had been in line for more than an hour but said she didn’t mind. “I wanted to make my vote count,” she said. “This is a historical moment right here!”
It was smoother sailing in other parts of the city. Doris Fork only had to wait ten minutes to vote at her polling site at a car dealership in Culver City, a Los Angeles suburb. The 72-year-old said she would have stood in line for as long as it took because she was voting for Obama. The lifetime Democrat had voted in numerous elections in her lifetime and feels thankful. “I think God has his hand on [Obama], and it’s such a blessing to have this man at this time,” said Fork. “It has only been 40 years since Martin Luther King and the Voting Rights Act. I thought it would have taken longer [to see a Black man on the ballot].”