Carson City locals excited that the election is (finally) over

When locals were asked how they felt after they finished voting, most couldn’t help but smile.

“It’s surreal,” said Bob Drew, who voted with his wife, Evelyn. “If we could express our happiness from levels between one and 10, it would be 50.”

“It’s wonderful that it’s over,” said Richard Castle. “I can look forward to the results now.”

On Tuesday, locals gathered at the Carson City Community Center and Courthouse with their friends, families, loved ones — and individually — to cast their votes.

For Jerry Smith, 89, it was an enjoyable experience, as he admired the crowd and clear skies.

“It’s a gorgeous day out in Carson City,” he said. “What makes me even more happy is seeing how many people are voting. So many things happen when ballots go out.”

Election Day also was a positive experience for first time voters, such as Carson High School senior Arianna Schmidt. She turned 18 last month and was more familiarized about major candidates.

However, that didn’t bother her.

“It feels good to be a part of the process and to get my voice heard,” she said.

The most common relief for Carson City folks was the fact that piles of advertisements will no longer take up space in their mailboxes.

“Before today, it was all so negative,” said Gaylene Cracraft, who voted with her sister, Greta O’Kelley. “There needs to be restriction to it.”

“I’m excited that the ads won’t be annoying me every minute,” said Robbie McConville. “But every vote counts and we have got to do our part.”

Not to mention the disappearance of random phone calls and commercials are also known as a post-election remedy.

“It’s a relief to not look at nasty, mean and rotten commercials,” said Lydia von Rumpf. “But I also think it’s important to exercise my rights.”

“The phone calls were annoying as hell,” said Floyd Crafton. “We don’t anymore of it as we already have lousy people to vote for.”

With other Election Day anxieties, the Carson City Sheriff’s Office ensured to have additional staffing out Tuesday, to keep the peace within the community following the election results.

“I was watching closely over the last week… and according to our intelligence network, we didn’t receive anything on organized threats,” Sheriff Ken Furlong said.

But, Furlong said that it is better to make sure they had the extra staffing, just in case something were to happen, they had a game plan ready before.

“I hope the staffing I did will be fruitless,” Furlong said. “Even as the capital, Carson City is a tolerant community, but I can’t turn my back and say that we couldn’t have that one person step-up.”

Regardless of the results, some locals expressed their appreciation for the Carson City community to be involved with voting. Sue Merriwether, Carson City clerk-recorder, said Tuesday had smooth transitions.

“It was fast and steady, but we are all excited about the turnout,” she said.

For local Rob Allencroft, his post-vote created a bond between him and the community, as he recently moved from Reno.

“What I appreciate about Carson City is that both political parties are balanced,” he said. “They were all involved with Nevada Day and the Carson Street ribbon cutting. They’re active in the community, which proves that Carson City is a big town with a big heart.”