'It's our responsibility': Voters take to the polls on election day in Volusia, Flagler

Jim Abbott, The Daytona Beach News-Journal
·5 min read

DAYTONA BEACH — Election day started early on Tuesday for David Butts, among the first to arrive as polls opened at 7 a.m. at City Island Library.

“I always like to get here first thing in the morning, to beat the crowds, to beat the lines,” said Butts, 54, who doesn’t recall missing an election-day vote since he made his first at age 18. “It’s our responsibility as Americans.”

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On Tuesday morning, there was little problem avoiding lines as voters arrived in a steady trickle at City Island and other precincts that included the Midtown Cultural Center and the Beville Road Church of Christ, both in Daytona Beach, and the Ormond Beach Regional Library in Ormond Beach.

Voters make their way to the cast ballots in Tuesday's primary election at City Island Library in Daytona Beach. “It’s our responsibility as Americans," said David Butts, 54, among he first to arrive when the polls opened at 7 a.m.
Voters make their way to the cast ballots in Tuesday's primary election at City Island Library in Daytona Beach. “It’s our responsibility as Americans," said David Butts, 54, among he first to arrive when the polls opened at 7 a.m.

“Hopefully, they come out a little bit later,” said Butts, an investment adviser. “I know it’s always slower in the primary.”

Butts was among many voters on both sides of the political spectrum who said that they are disheartened by the mean-spirited tone of politics in recent years.

Florida primary 2022 live updates: Voters head to polls in Volusia, Flagler elections

“Locally, I think we have some great candidates, and everybody is still looking toward making Daytona Beach better,” he said. “Nationally, there’s still a lot of division between the parties.

“It used to be you could carry on a conversation with people who had opposing views, but now you can’t really even talk politics if someone has a different opinion,” he said. “People just need to calm down and realize that just because someone has a different view from you, if doesn’t mean they’re a bad person.”

Amid all the campaign noise, voters throughout Florida headed to the quiet isolation of the polls on Tuesday to cast ballots in local and statewide primary and nonpartisan races.

As the sun rises, a poll worker relocates campaign signs beyond the required solicitation boundary as voters started to arrive to cast ballots in the primary election on Tuesday at City Island Library in Daytona Beach.
As the sun rises, a poll worker relocates campaign signs beyond the required solicitation boundary as voters started to arrive to cast ballots in the primary election on Tuesday at City Island Library in Daytona Beach.

Key races in Volusia, Flagler

In Volusia County, three school board seats are up for grabs, voters will choose an at-large seat for the County Council, and more council seats and mayoral positions are on the ballot along with the closely watched Republican primary for the 7th Congressional District.

In Flagler, another three school board seats are sought, controversial County Commission Chairman Joe Mullins faces a challenger while others fight for the District 2 and 4 seats, and Palm Coast turns out to vote for a City Council spot.

The winners of partisan primary races advance to the general election on Nov. 8. In nonpartisan general election races where no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, the top two compete in a runoff on Nov. 8.

Volusia voters arrive to carry out 'civic duty'

At City Island, the early birds also included Wilfredo Mendez, 80, who walked more than 2 miles round-trip on a bum leg with the assistance of a metal walker to reach the library from his apartment on North Ridgewood Avenue.

Wilfredo Mendez,80, walks past campaign signs after casting his ballot in the primary election on Tuesday at City Island Library in Daytona Beach. "That’s the greatest thing I have, my patriotic duty,” said Mendez, a native of Puerto Rico who walked a two-mile round-trip from his apartment to vote.
Wilfredo Mendez,80, walks past campaign signs after casting his ballot in the primary election on Tuesday at City Island Library in Daytona Beach. "That’s the greatest thing I have, my patriotic duty,” said Mendez, a native of Puerto Rico who walked a two-mile round-trip from his apartment to vote.

“I waste no time,” said Mendez, who is retired from work at several cleaning and construction companies in Orlando. “After you retire, that’s all you have is plenty of time, very little money.”

And the precious right to vote.

“That’s the greatest thing I have, my patriotic duty,” said Mendez, a native of Puerto Rico. “We need people (in elected office) to do something better for us, especially senior citizens.”

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Nearby, Philip Imhansiemhonehi, was among those who said that the heated rhetoric fueling political divisions was the nation’s biggest issue, often overshadowing the election-day goal of “putting the right person in the right position.”

“That kind of division is not good for any nation,” said Imhansiemhonehi, 74, a retired college professor. “It creates hatred for one another and that is not good for humanity.”

Across town at the Midtown Cultural Center, another voter said that going to the polls is a ritual that allows citizens to rise above partisan noise.

“Amid so many divisive voices, you can voice your opinion without saying anything to anybody,” said Cedric Newmon, 53, a retired U.S. Marine Corps veteran. “You don’t have to deal with the garbage that people are saying to be part of the process. A lot of people died to get (us) the right to vote, so to stand up and have your voice heard is vital.”

At yet another precinct, voter Leslie Payne, 69, of Daytona Beach, also characterized Tuesday’s trip to the polls as a citizen’s “very important civic duty.”

“I don’t like the way the country is going, heading toward socialism,” said Payne, a retired security worker, who arrived to cast his vote at the Bethel Road Church of Christ adorned in a red MAGA hat and a T-shirt emblazoned with the words “Stolen Property” over an image of the White House.

He also said that he is “very concerned” about the tone of political debate, focusing his criticism on the media for biased news coverage. “I think we’ve kind of lost our freedom of speech,” he said.

A bicyclist rides past dozens of campaign signs to enter the parking lot of the Ormond Beach Regional Library, where voters cast ballots in Tuesday's primary election. “We’ve got to stand up for democracy,” said voter Clenton Peterson, 65, an Army veteran and retired postal worker.
A bicyclist rides past dozens of campaign signs to enter the parking lot of the Ormond Beach Regional Library, where voters cast ballots in Tuesday's primary election. “We’ve got to stand up for democracy,” said voter Clenton Peterson, 65, an Army veteran and retired postal worker.

In Ormond Beach, voter Bejan Bourbour, 29, also said he was supporting Republican candidates.

“I’m voting Republican, because of moral values,” said Bourbour, who is concerned about issues such as attempts at gun-control legislation and the teaching of critical race theory in public schools.

“All that nonsense, that’s not how we all grew up, loving each other as a child of God,” he said.

Nearby, Clenton Peterson, 65, said that it’s now more important than ever to vote.

“We’ve got to stand up for democracy,” said Peterson, an Army veteran and retired postal worker. “Things are going haywire right now; the country is so divided. We have to do what we have to do to get it back on track.”

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Election day 2022 in Volusia. Flagler counties: What's the mood?