Clinton top choice in county

February 6, 2008

By Dana Yates

Dana Yates / Daily Journal Poll workers at San Mateo’s Fiesta Garden’s School were hit with a steady flow of voters last night during California’s presidential primary election.

Hillary Clinton took an early lead in yesterday’s San Mateo County Democratic primary, joining Republican John McCain as the county’s choice for the next president.

Clinton took a commanding lead as the first votes were counted at 8:05 p.m. Tuesday with an immediate 57 percent of early votes in her favor compared to 32 percent for Barack Obama and 9.45 percent for John Edwards, who dropped out of the race last week. The numbers remained the same throughout the evening.

Despite the use of electronic voting machines, the tallies came in at approximately the same rate as previous elections.

By 11 p.m., 211 of 553 precincts in San Mateo County were counted and 77,913 ballots from 357,075 registered voters were tallied. Clinton had 24,242 — or 55 percent — and Obama had 15,909 — or 36 percent — of the vote.

McCain earned 9,637 — or 50 percent — of the Republic votes and Mitt Romney came in a distant second with 4,546 — or 23 percent. Both were considered front runners in San Mateo County since July, Catherine Brinkman, executive director of the San Mateo County Republic Party, told the Daily Journal earlier this month.

Early efforts at the Obama campaign office in South San Francisco had a small handful of people phone banking until polls closed at 8 p.m. while other supporters waved banners at intersections and overpasses. Election evening parties were regulated to San Francisco.

Early indications show a record turnout for San Mateo with reports of ballots in short supply throughout the county. At Fiesta Gardens Elementary School in San Mateo, residents lined up at the door for a chance to cast their ballot at one of five electronic voting machines or two older, paper ballot booths.

Poll workers said they were busy from 5 p.m., receiving not just waves of people but a constant flow.

Nearly 43 percent of voters — or, more than 151,000 — requested absentee ballots, which is in line with the growing trend of those who opt not to use physical polling places, according to the San Mateo County Elections Office.

The Elections Office was projecting between 60 and 65 percent voter turnout, possibly setting a record for San Mateo County.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.