'Every vote matters': Milwaukee residents race to polls on last day of early voting

MILWAUKEE — People across Milwaukee cast their ballots on the final day of in-person early voting, Sunday. It was their last chance to vote in-person before Election Day.

From the north side to the south side, people raced to the polls in Milwaukee.

Michella Thorn voted at the Midtown Center with her sister, Carnetta Spruell, and their nephew, Shawn McElveen, early Sunday, knowing with work, they wouldn’t be able to make it out on Nov. 3.

“We really don’t have time during the week,” Thorn said.

“Just trying to get here, and get it done as fast as possible,” Spruell said.

It was important for them to vote in-person, and not absentee.

“I need to come in and feel the vote,” Thorn said.

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Over at the Zablocki Library, Nancy Seelen echoed the same feelings.

“I trust the absentee, but I’d rather just do it in person,” Seelen said.

It’s where Leslie Mazaba Ruiz voted for the first time. She was eligible in 2018, but said back then she couldn’t find a ride.

“My sister had gone to work that day, so I was like you know what I don’t think I can vote this year,” Mazaba Ruiz said. “Since it was my first time voting I didn’t want to do it by myself.”

This time around, she wasn’t going to miss out.

“One vote can change the whole election,” Mazaba Ruiz said. “Every vote matters.”

She and others said there’s just too much at stake.

“I want us to go back to normal. I want us to have our beautiful America again,” Thorn said.

“If you want to make a difference, go vote!” McElveen said.

The polls open at 7 a.m. on Nov. 3. If you still have an absentee ballot at home you can still turn it in at a dropbox until 7:30 p.m. on Election Day.

As of Sunday morning, 49 percent of registered Milwaukee voters had already voted either in-person or absentee, according to the Milwaukee Election Commission.

For more information about registration and voting, view TMJ4 News’ ‘Voter Guide’ here.

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