Massachusetts voters ventured to the polls through downpours and the occasional rumble of thunder Tuesday in what local election officials described as a heavy turnout likely motivated by national politics.
At the Springfield Boys & Girls Club, typically one of the busier polling places in the city, veteran election warden Joe Campbell said turnout as of late morning was “excellent.” He said there had been no letup in the stream of people coming in to vote since the doors to the polling place opened at 7 a.m.
"I would think in our precinct we would probably hit 70 percent (voter turnout)," said Campbell.
With a dearth of local races, Campbell said the high turnout appears to be driven by voters’ desire to weigh in on the national partisan divide and on the hotly contested ballot questions about nurse staffing levels and transgender rights.
At the top of the ballots in Massachusetts are two incumbents seeking re-election to second terms – Democratic U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren and Republican Governor Charlie Baker. Pre-election polls had both with large double-digit leads in their respective races.
Brian Wynne, the campaign manager for Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, said he remains optimistic for a “good result” after the polls close tonight.
" We've certainly heard the reports across the state of high turnout, but we know voters across Massachusetts are really excited about the bipartisan leadership the governor and lt. governor have brought to their jobs on Beacon Hill," Wynne said in a telephone interview just after noon Tuesday.
A get-out-the-vote effort for the incumbent Republican governor and his running mate was being directed through 40 field offices around the state. Volunteers have made 3 million phone calls, knocked on 500,000 doors, and sent out more than 400,000 text messages urging votes for Baker and Polito, according to Wynne.
"So, really proud of the effort and optimistic that it will deliver us a victory later this evening," he said.
Massachusetts Democrats have coordinated campaign offices throughout the state where today volunteers are making phone calls, sending text messages, and distributing literature.
Ellen Schwartz of Springfield was out before dawn this morning hanging reminders to vote on the doorknobs at about 50 homes.
" I'm pitching the Democratic ticket: Jay Gonzalez for governor, Elizabeth Warren for senator, Maura Healey for attorney general and the rest of the Massachusetts ticket," said Schwartz.
She recounted a story about meeting a man outside his home early Tuesday and trying to impress on him the importance of voting for practical, not partisan, reasons.
More than 700,000 people in Massachusetts voted prior to Election Day either in-person during the early voting period or by absentee ballot.
There are just over 4.5 million registered voters in Massachusetts.
