Missouri Voters Face Long Lines Early On Election Day

By 7 a.m Tuesday, the line for voting at All Souls Church in midtown Kansas City had more than 100 people in it.

Numerous other polling places around the metro reported a similar early morning rush, especially in Missouri, where there was no early voting period as in Kansas.

"I was expecting to wait, and I'm glad to wait," said Linda Rives, a voter who waited at All Souls. "Sometimes I come here, and you can walk right in. There's hardly anybody here [other elections], but I'm excited to see such long lines today. It means people are participating." 

Here was the view from some Missouri polling places this morning:

By mid-morning, lines had begun to ebb. Election authorities say they expect steady flows throughout the day with another rush in the late afternoon, after many voters get off of work. 

Meanwhile, in Kansas the story was a bit different Tuesday. More than 450,000 Kansans cast ballots in a two-week early voting period, a record for advanced balloting in the state. That made voting in person on Election Day decidedly less crowded than what many Missouri voters experienced.

Individual problems with voting, including confusion over some voters' registration status, came in from precincts in Kansas City and Clay County. As of late morning on Election Day, though, none of these problems seemed systemic or broad-based. 

Still, KCUR is monitoring Election Day problems with the help of the collaborative reporting app Electionland.

Kyle Palmer is KCUR's morning newscaster and a reporter. You can follow him on Twitter @kcurkyle.