Crowds Expected Again in Evening at One Local Polling Place

"We have an abundance of show ups, " said Goldie Goldwasser Tuesday morning. 

Goldwasser's running voting for one of the two precincts assigned to the Church of Scientology on Sunset Boulevard in Los Feliz. 

"I'm seeing about ten times the number of people I saw for the primary," she adds.

Goldwasser has run "eight or nine" different elections at the site since moving to Los Angeles in 2005. Goldwasser says it's not unusual for sites to combine two precincts, though it can cause a pinch at peak hours. 

She and her colleagues sit at tables along one wall. Another bank of officials flanks the opposite wall. Voters are in the middle.

A statue of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard overlooks the proceedings. DVDs about Scientology programs--in both English and Spanish--are available in the hall.

Just after 11 a.m., Annette Ramirez and a friend approach Goldwasser.

Ramirez has never voted before. She works up the street at Kaiser Permanente and wants to vote nearby, though her official polling place is near her home.

Goldwasser helps her fill out a provisional ballot, one of 30 or so filed already.

Ramirez votes and leaves elated. 

"This is so important to do," she said. "There's a big change coming either way and I wanted to be part of it."

Whether her provisional ballot can be verified and counted in time to affect the election remains an open issue.

Meantime, Goldwasser encourages others to think about volunteering at the polls.

"It's alot of fun," she said. "And we really do need workers." 

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