Virginia: A Swing State
The polls in Virginia closed at 7 p.m, on Tuesday, one of the earliest times to close in the nation. The Braddock District in Fairfax County opened at 6 a.m. and was open until 7 p.m. But volunteers arrived at the polls as early as 4 a.m.! A volunteer told me that the Braddock District voting location opened on time to eager voters.
Here in Virginia, it was an ideal day to vote. It was sunny outside, pretty chilly, but the sun was warm. Many people swarmed to get in line. The Signal Hill precinct voting was held in Lake Braddock Secondary School. The school’s parking lot was full, and had a good stream of cars coming throughout the day.
In 2008, President Obama won the electoral votes from Virginia. Virginia also has many electoral votes, so it is an important state. As of 9 p.m., it is too early for anyone to really predict how Virginia will turn out.
In Virginia, the northern counties are the most important of the state. These counties have significantly more of the population than the more southern counties. In 2008, if you looked at an electoral map, John McCain won more counties than Obama. But Virginia went Democratic because Obama secured those more populated counties. So it is crucial for either candidate to win over those northern counties, like Fairfax, to take the vote for the whole of Virginia.
Right now, at 9:30, there are only 10% of the votes in for Fairfax County. Fairfax County is a highly populated county at 1 million people. Last election, this county voted Democratic. But now it’s hard to tell. Even CNN’s coverage of predictions skipped Virginia because they couldn’t predict anything. The state of Virginia as a whole is a toss-up. No matter who wins this election, it’s going to be close.
Here in Virginia, it was an ideal day to vote. It was sunny outside, pretty chilly, but the sun was warm. Many people swarmed to get in line. The Signal Hill precinct voting was held in Lake Braddock Secondary School. The school’s parking lot was full, and had a good stream of cars coming throughout the day.
In 2008, President Obama won the electoral votes from Virginia. Virginia also has many electoral votes, so it is an important state. As of 9 p.m., it is too early for anyone to really predict how Virginia will turn out.
In Virginia, the northern counties are the most important of the state. These counties have significantly more of the population than the more southern counties. In 2008, if you looked at an electoral map, John McCain won more counties than Obama. But Virginia went Democratic because Obama secured those more populated counties. So it is crucial for either candidate to win over those northern counties, like Fairfax, to take the vote for the whole of Virginia.
Right now, at 9:30, there are only 10% of the votes in for Fairfax County. Fairfax County is a highly populated county at 1 million people. Last election, this county voted Democratic. But now it’s hard to tell. Even CNN’s coverage of predictions skipped Virginia because they couldn’t predict anything. The state of Virginia as a whole is a toss-up. No matter who wins this election, it’s going to be close.
—Kid Reporter Abby Sacks
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