Some Forsyth County voters seemed shocked at the lack of lines Tuesday when they went to cast their ballots.

Many of those who voted said they came for the presidential election.

"The voting experience here was awesome," said resident Altovise McClain, who voted at Daves Creek Elementary School. "We were here for five minutes car door to car door."

She said her chief motivation in coming to the polls was to vote for president.

"Some of the other people on the ballot," McClain said, "I was like, 'Who are you?'"

In addition to the race for president, the Forsyth County ballot featured contested contests for local school board and county commission, as well as U.S. Congress and Senate.

Also on the ballot were separate bond questions on funding for a new county jail and sheriff's headquarters and three state Constitutional Amendments, among other items.

Annalisa Blanco, also of the Daves Creek precinct, said she assumed the lack of voters at the polls Tuesday afternoon was due to the high numbers of early voters this election.

Forsyth County voters cast more than 33,500 votes last week, according to Gary J. Smith, chief voter registrar.

That was in addition to the nearly 18,500 voters who cast in-person and mailed-in absentee ballots between Sept. 19 and Oct. 24.

All told, about 68 percent of the people who voted did so before Tuesday.

"I think people rushed to the polls for early voting," Blanco said. "My parents went out to vote this morning, and they said they had a long line."

Poll worker Chris Spragg confirmed that lines were longer Tuesday morning as the polls opened.

"This morning we had 39 people lined up when we opened the doors," said Spragg, who manned the Cumming branch of the Forsyth County Public Library.

"People voted early this time around," he said. "That helped out a lot."
Bridget Saylor voted at the library Tuesday afternoon.

"I'm so surprised I'm not having to stand around waiting," Saylor said. "I thought I was going to be here all afternoon."

She added that in past presidential elections she remembered the lines stretching sometimes out the building's doors.

Ben Welijka cast his vote at the library as well. He smiled as he walked out the building's exit.

"This was a very quick, easy and pleasant voting experience," he said. "Could not have been a better one."