'In And Out In No Time At All': How Voting Went In Rhode Island

PROVIDENCE, RI — The general election is over, and while the country won't know the final results of the presidential and some local elections right away, Rhode Islanders had a lot to say about how their voting experience went, whether by mail or in person, either on Election Day or early at their town or city hall.

Patch reader experiences, in their own words, are listed below. All opinions expressed are the reader's own and do not reflect the views of Patch.

Dennis Shea, Cranston

I voted at around 3:00 pm and there was no line at all. I was in and out in no time at all. They had sanitized pens and the poll workers are behind plexiglas barriers.

Paul Ainsworth. Wakefield

Voted at Matunuck Elementary School at 8AM, no line, and no wait.

Jack O'Donnell, Newport

Voted at Pell School. No line went right to desk got ballot in and out in 5 minutes. Hope this doesn’t mean people aren’t voting.

Harle Tinney, Middletown

Today was calm and easy at the VFW Polling location at about 11 am. The staff was excellent, helpful and efficient. The booths were very far apart and the monitor at the scanner watched carefully as everyone scanned the ballot. This was the most calm election with no lines and not any disturbances anywhere. The Middletown Town Council candidates stood in the cold to give folks information. With 17 candidates for 7 spots it is encouraging that there is so much participation in our town.

Middletown, like many other locations, faces some challenges. I voted for candidates who expressed a positive attitude for regionalization. All the candidates were focused on education as a major issue — and My personal opinion having lived in Newport for 52 years and now Middletown for eight years, I see deteriorating structures that are costly to upgrade. One high school on the island with localized sports fields in each city/town could result in a better use of our tax money. So much will end up online now — Covid was just an excuse to make changes much needed in education and business technology. We have had warnings about the rule of the tech giants — Unelected power! The social media influence is mindboggling to us who lived most of our lives in the old world. I am a historian and feel that history is our best teacher upon which we can build for success by avoiding the errors of the past. Erasing the errors or canceling those who came before us in differing circumstances is ridiculous. New stuff will not be new for long!

Henry Peloquin, Woonsocket

No lines at 11 am same as previous years...easy.

Christine M., Woonsocket

I voted at the Harris School at approximately 10:15 AM [Tuesday]. The poll workers did a fine job keeping the people moving. Everyone had masks on. We entered the door to the gym and waited until we were waved in one at a time to get a ballot. I filled out my ballot and was directed to leave by another door. The whole process lasted about 5 minutes. After listening to the news media all week I had planned to spend at least an hour in line. Again, the poll workers did a good job moving voters along and adhering to social distancing.

Claire Gadrow, Matunuck

I was proud to vote in person on Election Day. At Matunuck ES. 5 minutes in and out. I wore this shirt. One fellow voter laughed at it. Another said thank you. My vote is for law and order in the country.

[Editor's note: the reader shared a photo of a "defend the police" t-shirt with her submission.]

Pablo Gramajo, Coventry

I had a great experience casting my early vote in Coventry a week ago. The lines were short, everyone practiced social distancing and the voting process was smooth. The rest of my family opted for mail-in voting and that was also smooth. Requested the ballot, received it with simple instructions and delivered to the Coventry drop off box at the town hall.