By Bridget Chapman

Voting was light this morning at Deer Park Middle School in Randallstown, MD, but the Democratic election judge on-site attributed that to high turnout with early voting.

Meanwhile, at the Northwood Elementary voting site in Baltimore City a Democratic election judge at Margaret Brent Elementary in Charles Village said, “early morning turnout was heavy, heavier than I’ve ever seen in five years of working the polls.”

Technical problems were few, most election judges said.

Democratic election worker, Michael Kain, said that at noon approximately 250 people had voted at his Baltimore City location—better than the primaries but less than two years ago. “This time of the year always excite me,” he says, acknowledging that the excitement is part of what propels him through the long day.

Many voters, old and young, told Spokesman reporters that they turned out because of the gubernatorial race and were less interested in other candidates or bond issues.

Justin Coleman, 18, was voting for the first time and says he cast his ballot for Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown. If Brown wins, he will be the first African American governor of Maryland. “It was a little confusing at first trying to figure out exactly how to fill out the ballot, but a volunteer came and assisted me through the process,” Coleman said. He left a few selections, like the transportation ballot question, blank because he wasn’t sure about the issue.

Phyllis Covington, 65, was an experienced voter who regularly makes the quarter-mile walk from her house to the polls. “I want my vote to count,” she says, describing that act as “a privilege our ancestors fought for so our voice could be heard.”

Additional reporting by Andrew Cephas and Kayla Coates