This election day was considered to be more important than the previous ones by many voters who spoke with The Dallas Express on Tuesday.
In the gubernatorial race, Democrat Robert “Beto” O’Rourke challenged Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who was seeking a third term in office, but Dallas voters said other races were important as well.
The Dallas Express spoke to a variety of people Tuesday, asking how and why they voted the way they did and discussing what issues were important to them.
Some cited gun control and abortion as major issues of contention and reasons to vote for O’Rourke. Abbott supporters talked about gun rights, border control, and freedom of speech as their top issues.
Oak Cliff
At 3 p.m. at the Oak Cliff Government Center on Jefferson Boulevard, hundreds of campaign signs from all the various candidates were visible in front of the free parking garage. A steady stream of cars drove into the garage, some for curbside voting.
The majority of voters that The Dallas Express spoke to at the Oak Cliff Government Center said they were voting Democrat.
Gabriela Domingoez said she voted down the ticket for Democrats, including O’Rourke.
“Because I’m Spanish,” she said. “I don’t need more racist people in the country.”
Maria Romero was at the polls as a volunteer for incumbent county commissioner Elba Garcia, handing out what she called “cheat sheets” for voting down the line for Democrats.
“[The election] has a much higher stake,” said Romero, who claimed that she felt a lot of people were voting based on candidates’ stances on abortion.
“I support Beto because he supports women’s issues,” Romero said. “I’m 69, and when Trump was elected, I totally felt we went back 50 years.”
Although she said she did not feel like this was an election about Donald Trump, she felt like things have swung in a more conservative direction since the former president was elected in 2016.
J.R. Glover said he voted for a mixed ticket of some Republicans and some Democrats. He mentioned specifically voting for O’Rourke for governor, though.
“I just kind of looked for the candidates who had more of stronger stances for varying things that I had a stronger regard for,” Glover said.
Early Voting
A key factor in the Texas midterms is early voting. Dallas County reported as much as 27.5% of the electorate turned out for early voting ahead of the election, according to Community Impact.
Early voting lasted from October 24 to November 4, with more than 55,000 votes cast on the last day of early voting, the highest single-day of early voting turnout.
University Park
The polls at the United Methodist Church in University Park were crowded and filled with people with competing political views, holding banners and signs and trying to talk to people who entered the polling area.
Hundreds were still casting their ballots as the sun was setting.
Andrew Gautreaux said he was mostly concerned about border security and protecting the Constitution, which prompted him to vote for Abbott.
“Everyone kind of helped when we formed this wonderful country,” Gautreaux said. “I think a lot of it’s gotten away from us … We all have our opinions, and I respect the opinions of others. I believe we all have the right to vote on the right to free speech and things like that, but I think that [Abbott] is the better candidate for protecting the border and giving everybody a chance to go through the process of getting here, no matter which country you’re from.”
David O’Brien was on his way to vote and said he considers himself to be a contrarian in University Park because he planned on mainly voting Democrat.
“This is a very conservative area,” he said. “My biggest issue is gun control. The idea that these people have assault rifles and all these guns is ridiculous. And we know who’s running for governor who is anti-assault rifles, right? So I’m voting for him.”
O’Brien was referring to O’Rourke who supports increased restrictions on gun ownership.
Allan Toole was holding a banner asking people to vote for Lauren Davis, a candidate for Dallas County Judge on the Republican ticket. He said he was very upset with Clay Jenkins and some of the other Democratic candidates on the ballot because of their reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also said he voted for Abbot.
“I want our state to remain Red and for us to maintain our freedom and liberty within the states,” Toole said.
He also said he wished Abbott was more like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“I think he just represents his constituents a little bit better and is more in line with what they want to see him doing as governor of the state,” Toole said.
