AUSTIN, Texas — Two of the mega-centers showed no lines on Monday afternoon during the first day of early voting in Austin.
In Travis County, 5,164 people voted on Monday, while the County received 1,582 mail-in ballots, totaling 6,746 votes, or 0.79% of registered voters.
However, people like Pat Jackson still showed up.
"We always make a practice of voting early. It's simpler, it's easier," said Jackson. "We read the newspaper, we see what's on the ballots, we make our mind and then we come."
One of the items drawing a lot of attention on the ballot this election cycle is Austin's Proposition A. If passed, Prop A would require two sworn Austin police department officers for every 1,000 residents, among other things.
On Monday, about three dozen people showed up for a rally opposing Prop A, a proposition Mayor Steve Adler called "reckless and irresponsible."
"It's going to require us to cut funding from other places. It's going to require us to cut funding from EMS and mental health first responders, getting additional places for women in battered homes to seek safety. The kinds of things that we're doing as a city that are really contributing to public safety are the things it will stop dead in their tracks," said Adler after Monday's rally.
However, supporters said it's something Austin desperately needs, saying the Austin police department is in a "staffing crisis."
"You think Austin is not safe now, just wait till the end of the year. Wait till next year if Prop A doesn't pass," said Matt Mackowiak, with Save Austin Now, during KVUE's Prop A debate. "We're down to 1,300 or 1,200 officers. That is the trajectory that we are on. We have to turn that around."
KVUE hosted the Prop A debate on Thursday. To view the debate in full, click here.
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: