JACKSON, Wyo. — To avoid the polls on election day, community members came out in force to cast their ballots on Monday, Nov. 4, at the County Administration Building.
According to Teton County Clerk Maureen Murphy 55% of the community has already turned out to vote, as of Monday morning.
On Monday at noon, people could be heard discussing the hunting season, to-do lists, Thanksgiving plans, Grizzly 399 and other topics as they patiently waited in the hour-long line. Many people chose to use their lunch break to vote.
Wyoming Game and Fish Department Game Warden Daniel Tisi said that the state agency encourages all of its employees to take the time off of work to vote. Wyoming statute dictates that voters are entitled to one hour of paid leave on Election Day to visit the polls, under most circumstances.
“Working for the state, they give you time to vote,” Tisi said. “They send out an email encouraging you to vote.”
Some residents shared their reasons for showing up for this year’s election.
“My vote matters just like everyone else and I have a role to fulfill as an American citizen,” Jackson resident Alden Elliot said.
Longtime local Sam Mead told Buckrail that this is an important election for everyone in Teton County.
“I have concerns about traffic, growth and housing,” Mead said.
Seasonal resident Larry Chalfant said he has only lived in Jackson for the past three winters.
“I care about the national vote,” Chalfant said. “I’ve paid attention to local issues before but I’ve been out of town for awhile.”
Two first-time Latina voters urged others from the Hispanic community to vote.
“I just turned 18 and I felt a little bit lost at first because it’s my first time, but overall I feel pretty good about it,” Melany Hernandez Garcia shared while standing in line. “A very big issue that I care a lot about is housing. I come from an immigrant family. I’ve seen them work two jobs, and live paycheck to paycheck just to pay the rent sometimes. That is a big issue, especially because we have a large hispanic community here.”
Analy Garcia Perez echoed similar sentiments as a first-time voter.
“Since I was younger, I always wanted to be an active part of society,” Perez Garcia said. “I want to do anything that I can, now that I turned 18.”
Kyra Halls said that adults need to help young people get involved, regardless of who they are voting for.
“A lot of people I’ve noticed want to be involved, but don’t necessary know how it works or they find it really intimating,” Halls said. “It’s a lot easier than you think. Ask the people around you and your support system, ‘Hey, how do I do this?’ That’s really important for people of color and immigrants who don’t necessarily have people in their life that know how to get involved or register.”
The polls will be open at five locations on Tuesday, Nov. 5 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
