ABC-7 Local Election Results Blog

ABC-7 News Producer Maria Garcia is blogging about the latest local election results live from the El Paso County Courthouse.

Barack Obama is the next president of the United States, or at least that’s what the latest numbers indicate.

I want to remember this moment. Perhaps, one day, I’ll tell people I was at the El Paso County Courthouse when the the first African-American man was elected president.

A few minutes ago, Elections Administrator Javier Chacon came out of the “computer room” and said “It’s over, guys.” He was referring to the presidential race.

El Paso County has 170 precincts. The last update we received had 110 precincts counted.

County employees tell us there are still two precincts that are not being tallied at the courthouse. One of those polling places still had 200 people in line after the 7 p.m. deadline.

Precincts 109 and 111 should be in later tonight and county staffers are already putting voting signs and “election supply kits” away.

As for county races, Richard Wiles is leading the sheriff race by more than 50,000 votes.

In the race for District 78, Moody has more than 26,000 votes, while Margo has just over 22,000 votes. Earlier I mentioned one of Moody’s campaign staffers was calling in results a few feet away from me. After seeing the latest numbers, he made a phone call and left.

There are now less county employees here and the lobby is almost silent. There areoldies playing from one of the county rooms and the only other media staffers who were here earlier have left.

I was surprised not to see the El Paso Times or more TV stations here. It’s moments like this I’m grateful we make elections a priority. This is when I know we really do go above and beyond. Yes, sitting here alone, committed to get the latest numbers even though there are no competitors around, makes me see why I love my job.

Okay – I just heard precinct 109 is here. Gotta go. Stay tuned.

The numbers we have gotten so far indicate that 3 out of 4 voters in El Paso County voted straight-ticket Democrat.

Seventy-two precincts have been counted and 75% of the votes were from people who pressed number six on the voting machine. Six was the number you needed to press if you wanted a straight-ticket Democrat vote.

What does this mean? El Paso remains a blue city in a very, very red state. Some will say that’s a great thing, others will disagree.

Whatever your opinion is on this, there is no doubt El Paso is different from the rest of Texas. We have our own food, culture, and yes – our own politics. Good or bad – we’re El Paso.

The number is staggering. 75%!!! How many of those voters really, genuinely agreed with all of the Democratic candidates, and how many are just hardcore loyalists?

We don’t know. However we do know one thing – El Paso marches to its own political beat. We’re Texans – but we’re also Borderland residents – and according to the latest numbers – many here bleed blue.

County employees continue to walk in with blue bags. Inside these bags are the voting numbers from all of the polling places in the county.

Once they come in, county staff work to sort through until they make it to the “Elections Computer Room”, where all of the electronic counting goes on.

This is a “hurry up and wait” kind of game. As I sit right outside the computer room, I’m constantly checking inside – waiting for the results to be printed so I can call the ABC-7 newsroom with the latest news.

That way, our producers and reporters don’t have to wait for the results to be posted on-line, and neither do you.

So far, 30 precincts have been counted.

One race is still really close. District 78 voters, it seems, are split almost down the middle. At this point, Dee Margo has 46.25% of the votes, while Moody has 50.72%. This may seem like quite a lead for Moody, but with only 30 precincts reported, an upset is not out of the question.

Media staff aren’t the only ones here. It’s been interesting to see Dee Margo’s campaign staffer, Mr. Walker, wait anxiously and call in results as soon as he gets them.

Within the last 10 minutes of sitting in front of this computer, nearly half a dozen blue bags have made it in.

I’m back to the “elections computer room.”

Today is the day – the day we find out who the American people have chosen to lead their country. Nationally, we’ve been waiting to get results for almost two years. Locally, the races haven’t been that long, but it’s still thrilling to see early numbers.

So, let’s see what we have so far:

Barack Obama gets 73,246 votes in El Paso County. John McCain gets 39,502. These numbers are not final.

Poll workers are coordinating to get precinct results to the courthouse so we can have the latest numbers.

We’re in the basement of the courthouse – where all of the counting and tallying is taking place. It’s great to be among the first to see the numbers.

As I look around, I can see that even county employees have been waiting for today. Earlier, I walked into Election Administrator Javier Chacon’s office. He could hardly get a word out without his phone ringing. It’s clear he has prepared his staff for this. Each person is aware of their duties and everything is looking organized so far.

I will be writing throughout the night. Stay tuned for the latest from Election Central in El Paso.