By Eleanor Boudreau
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkno/local-wkno-932671.mp3
Memphis, TN – It's a gloomy Election Day for Democrats--Republicans are expected to pick up seats in Congress as a result of anti-incumbent sentiment sweeping the nation; and there was a literal gloom in Millington, Tennessee this morning as grey skies turned to rain shortly after polls opened.
This time last week Lenore Tyler wasn't planning on making the trip to her polling station at the Baker Community Center, but she changed her mind.
"I heard the President's call to get out there and vote," Tyler said, "So I decided to come out."
Democratic turn out has picked up nationally, and in Shelby County, since the start of early voting, but whether it will be enough to curb a strong anti-incumbent, anti-Democratic sentiment in Tennessee's 8th Congressional District remains to be seen.
Jose Hernandez knows he's an unusual Republican.
"Many, many, many Hispanic people [are] Democrats," Hernandez said, "Maybe 90 percent, but not me."
Hernandez said he is troubled by Republican policies on immigration, but he still voted a straight Republican ticket because he is more worried about, "The Economy."
The economy was also on Steve Ball's mind when he picked Republican Stephen Fincher over long-time state Senator Democrat Roy Herron. Ball almost spits when he says, "I don't like voting for a politician per-se."
Ball says Fincher, who is a farmer from Frog Jump, Tennessee, and ran with the slogan 'PLOW Congress,' seemed like the better candidate to him, "It all comes down to who you trust," he said. "And I just don't believe Herron is actually going to try to save us money."
Ball is a firefighter. He also voted to merge Memphis and Shelby County governments because he thinks merger will save money.
Right now Ball says, "Five people are trying to do the same thing, and it gets in everybody's way, and it wastes money. I've seen it."
But consolidation is not an issue that breaks simply on party lines. Drew Johnson, like Ball, voted for Fincher, but he voted against merging governments. Johnson is a financial planner by trade, and money was also on his mind, but he said he wasn't convinced consolidation would equal savings.
"It sounded like there were are a lot of back door taxes that were going to be added in as time went on," Johnson said. "And a lot of the research I read suggested the costs went in kind of a U-Shape where it dropped slightly after, then went back up a few years later."