[Update, 8 p.m.] Election Day 2012: Polls Closed

Update, Nov. 6, 8 p.m.

The polling places are closed.

Update, Nov. 6, 7:47 p.m.

The polls close in 13 minutes!

Update, Nov. 6, 7:40 p.m.

Due to a car that crashed into a utility pole Monday night, the traffic light at the intersection of Route 44 and Darling Drive was not working until late afternoon Tuesday.

Darling Drive is where Avon's second voting district, the Company 1 fire station, is located.

Poll workers said it caused traffic build-ups coming into the polls.

"It has definitely affected the attitudes and temperment of the voters," Assistant Republican Registrar Dotty Magda.

There was a police officer manning the intersection until it was fixed. The light was working again around 3 p.m.

Update, Nov. 6, 7:11 p.m.

Charlie Roraback, Fifth Congressional District candidate Andrew Roraback's father, said that, having been the father of a lacrosse goalie, being a canididate's dad can also be nervewracking.

He went from polling place to polling place Tuesday, visiting the Avon High School polling place in the afternoon, holding to greet voters and support his son's campaign. His wife, Molly and daughter, Elizabeth Fowler were in Avon, as well. 

Conor Maloney, an Avon resident who worked for Andrew Roraback's campaign for the August primary, took some time off from Providence College Tuesday, where he's a sophomore, to greet voters at Avon High School for the Roraback campaign.

"I think we need someone to stop this partisanship and stop the polarization of the parties and come across borders and really talk it out," Maloney said, calling Roraback an "independent thinker" who could do the job.

In the presidential race, Maloney said he is looking for a president to get the economy going again, "who is not going to spend a lot of money on things that maybe we can't afford right now. He also wants the next president to take foreign affairs and immigration seriously and get the country "back on track."

David Peña, the Avon Democratic candidate challenging state Rep. Tim LeGeyt for the 17th District state House seat, is also looking for both parties to work together and that's something he heard often from people in Avon and Canton he talks to while door knocking for his campaign.

"I hope that the message is sent to Washington and the state, as well, that we have to work together to make things work," he said. "If not we lose the ability of governing."

Besides his own race, LeGeyt noted his strong interest in the outcome of the Fifth Congressional District race between Roraback and Democrat Elizabeth Esty. He has worked with both of them in the General Assembly. At the presidential level, he said he'd be surprised if we know our next president Wednesday.

"I actually think we may not know who our president is for the next couple of weeks because it's going to be so close and there are so many areas where the voting process has been made more difficult by natural disaster that it's going to take awhile before a lot of the votes get counted, I'm afraid," LeGeyt said.

To see other comments from the polling places in Avon and Canton, click on one of the videos attached to this article

Update, Nov. 6, 6:20 p.m.

Both Avon Democrats and Republicans told Patch that some of their political signs at polling places and their homes were stolen before Election Day. For the full story, click on the link provided.

The Registrar of Voters Office asks that political signs be removed from Avon High School and Roaring Brook School by Tuesday evening. 

Update, Nov. 6, 5:29 p.m.

As of 5:29 p.m., 7,732 people in Avon have voted, which is about 61.3 percent.

Update, Nov. 6, 4:37 p.m.

Many candidates were at the polling places Avon greeting voters and rallying for last-minute support as voters went to cast their ballots.

Fifth Congressional District candidate Andrew Roraback visited the Avon High School polling place Tuesday morning.

His family was also there, including his father, Charlie Roraback, a Litchfield resident, holding a sign that said, "Give Andrew your vote. He wants to keep you afloat. You'll make me glad because I'm his dad."

Elizabeth Fowler, a Grosse Pointe, Michigan resident and a Litchfield native, flew to back Connecticut on Election Day to visit the polling places and hold signs for her brother's campaign. Roraback's mother, Molly sat holding a sign at the Avon fire department headquarters (Voting District 2) to rally support for son's campaign Tuesday afternoon.

Roraback's opponent Democrat Elizabeth Esty and Eighth District state Senate candidate Dan Seger visited Avon High School late afternoon.

State Rep. Tim LeGeyt and his Avon opponent David Peña for the 17th District House seat, state Sen. Kevin Witkos, R-8, and State Rep. Brian Becker, D-19, were all at various polling places in Avon, as well.

Update, Nov. 6, 3:37 p.m.

As of 2 p.m., 2,520 Avon residents (48.5 percent) voted at Avon High School (Voting District 1), 1,690 (48 percent) voted at the fire department headquarters (Voting District 2) and 1,953 (49.9 percent) voted at Roaring Brook School (Voting District 3).

About 49 percent of Avon registered voters have cast their ballots, or 6,163 in total.

Update, Nov. 6, 3:18 p.m.

As of noon, 2,141 residents voted at Avon High School (first voting district), or 41 percent. Kerry Ladouceur, deputy Republican registrar, said it's been busier at the high school than last year.

By 1 p.m., 1,779 had voted at Roaring Brook School (third voting district), or 45.4 percent. As of 2 p.m. 1,690 voters had cast their ballots at the fire house (second voting district), or 48 percent.

Update, Nov. 6, 10:49 a.m.

As of Monday afternoon, Avon had about 12,609 registered voters. For a table breaking down the registered voters for each party by Avon voting district, click on the link provided.

Update, Nov. 6, 10:36 a.m.

As of 10:36 a.m., 2,367 people in Avon have voted combined in Voting Districts 1 and 2. District 3 voter turnout has not been tallied yet.

About 1,458 have voted in Avon's first voting district (28 percent) at Avon High School and about 909 have voted at the town's second voting district (26 percent) at the Company 1 fire station.

Original Story

Good morning, and welcome to Election Day 2012!

Today, Avon residents go to the polls to choose a president, a U.S. Senator, a U.S. Representative from the Fifth District, a state Senator from the Eighth District and state Representatives from the 17th and 19th Districts. Residents will also be voting for registrars of voters.

See below for information on where to go to cast your ballot and the list of candidates. We've also included how Avon voted in 2008, the year of the last presidential election, and in 2010, the last mid-term election.

Read it over, then visit your local polling station between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. to make your voice heard! And be sure to check back with Patch for updates throughout the day, including the announcement of the winners as soon as votes are tallied.

Avon Polling Stations

• District #1: Avon High School, 510 West Avon Rd.
• District #2: Avon Volunteer Fire Department, Company 1, 25 Darling Dr.
• District #3: Roaring Brook School, 30 Old Wheeler Ln.

How Avon Voted in 2008 (88% Turnout)

(D=Democrat; R=Republican; G=Green; I=Independent; WF=Working Families; CL=Connecticut for Lieberman)

PRESIDENT

• Barack Obama-Joseph Biden (D) — 5,698 votes
• John McCain-Sarah Palin (R) — 4,868 votes

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, FIFTH DISTRICT

• Chris Murphy (D) — 5,577 votes
• David Cappiello (R) — 4,500 votes

EIGHTH SENATE DISTRICT

• Arthur House (D)— 3,347 votes (866 Working Families votes)
• Kevin Witkos (R) — 5,900 votes

17th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• Brett Eisenlohr (D) — 4,289 votes
• Timothy LeGeyt (R) — 3,881 votes

19th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• Beth Bye (D) — 1,007 votes
• Theresa McGrath (R) — 850 votes

How Avon Voted in 2010 (70% Turnout)

(D=Democrat; R=Republican; G=Green; I=Independent; WF=Working Families; CL=Connecticut for Lieberman; SA=Socialist Action)

U.S. SENATE

• Richard Blumenthal (D) — 3,725 votes
• Linda McMahon (R) — 5,545 votes

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, FIFTH DISTRICT

• Chris Murphy (D) — 4,164 votes (111 WF votes)
• Sam Caligiuri (R) — 4,092 votes (42 Independent votes)

EIGHTH SENATE DISTRICT

• Donald O'Brien (D) — 2,658 votes (80 WF votes)
• Kevin Witkos (R) — 5,553 votes

17th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• Chris Gaffney (D) — 2,731 votes
• Timothy LeGeyt (R) — 3,983 votes

19th ASSEMBLY DISTRICT

• Brian Becker (D) — 651 votes
• Denise Berard Hall (R) — 846 votes

............................................

Editor's Note: *2008 and 2010 results according to the Connecticut Secretary of State's Office.