"It's real exciting to finally do something everybody gets to do," the Wright City High School senior said. "Your vote counts for the whole United States." Edwards was one of nearly 16,000 residents in the county who voted in Tuesday's election. Warren County Clerk Barb Daly said voter turnout was 74.25 percent. Of the 21,174 registered voters, 15,722 casted a ballot. It was the highest turnout for a presidential election since 1992 when 78 percent was reached. The Missouri secretary of state's office had estimated a 76-percent statewide turnout a week earlier. In the last presidential election in 2004, 69 percent (13,678 of 19,832 registered voters) went to the polls in Warren County. The majority of the county's precincts reported heavy volume in the morning hours, but election officials said it tailed off throughout much of the afternoon. County Clerk Barb Daly was happy to report that ballots were cast with just minimal issues. "I think it's a very good turnout," she said. "We had some (long) lines, but everyone handled them. I think it ran smoothly. Overall, I think it went real well." The minor snafus encountered at various precincts included voting for multiple candidates in a race, pencil marks bleeding through to the other side of a ballot, and voters showing up at the wrong precinct. Many voters arrived at the polls while the sky was still dark and way before the doors were open. Dave Schindler and his wife were one of the first to arrive at Warrenton Baptist Church at 5:30 a.m. By the time the polls opened a half-hour later, the line was estimated to be 60 people deep, reached into the parking lot. Schindler said he arrived early because he wanted his voice to be heard. "I think this economy is scaring everybody to death," he said. "It's about time to be scared I would think. This deal here is going in the wrong direction somewhat. Somebody has got to be blamed." Several other precincts reported longer-than-expected lines. Polling judges at Friedens United Church of Christ in Warrenton said the wait at one point early in the morning was nearly 45 minutes. "It's gone really smooth," said Terry Williams, a polling judge at Friedens. "It's been an exceptionally good turnout at this precinct. In Wright City, polling judge Dean Summers said the precinct saw 75 ballots cast in each of the first two hours. "We didn't get to look up," he said with a laugh. Daly praised the work of her polling judges for keeping the lines moving smoothly. "My election judges, you couldn't ask for a better group of guys and gals," she said. "There are none better than Warren County. They work so hard for me. I appreciate everything they do for me." Local Races Republicans continued their stronghold in Warren County by winning every local race, including filling two county commissioner seats and keeping one of their own in Jefferson City. Hubert Kluesner compiled 5,182 votes unofficially to distance himself from Democrat Floyd Vincent, who had 2,613 votes, in the Southern District Commissioner race. Dan Hampson made it a Republican sweep by edging Democrat Rich Helton in a tight Northern District Commissioner race. Hampson had 3,634 votes to Helton's 3,454 according to unofficial results. Kluesner and Hampson, who both defeated incumbents in the August primary, will be sworn in Jan. 2, 2009. Republican Mike Sutherland claimed his fourth and final term by capturing the 99th District state representative seat with a convincing win over political newcomer Patrick Lewis of Montgomery City. Sutherland had 13,375 votes to Lewis' 6,485. Sutherland had a 9,979-4,953 advantage in Warren County and 3,396-1,532 edge in Montgomery County. Others who ran unopposed were: Kevin Harrison (sheriff), Wendy Nordwald (assessor), Jeffrey Hoelscher (public administrator), Roger Mauzy (coroner) and Robert Lewis (surveyor). Everyone except for Hoelscher is an incumbent. In the city of Warrenton, residents were asked to approve a one-half cent sales tax increase to help fund an indoor recreation center. The issue was rejected in a close race, 1,587-1,462. Had it passed, the sales tax in Warrenton would have increased from 7.975 cents to 8.475 cents.

Election 2008: County Sees Huge Turnout

Election 2008: County Sees Huge Turnout