Early Bird Voting Slow at This O.C. Mall Outpost

Wedged between an art store and a clothing boutique advertising racy Brazilian fashions, the voting machines looked a little out of place.

“It’s been slow; mostly people who were curious,” said Diana Wintrode, an elections inspector with the Orange County Registrar of Voters office.

Last week, the agency installed polling places at six shopping malls, including the Irvine Spectrum, where Wintrode and another election worker, Ken Jumper, were working Saturday inside a vacant store.

The polling places also were located at the Brea Mall, Buena Park Mall, Santa Ana’s Main Place, The Shops at Mission Viejo and Westminster Mall. Registered voters can cast early ballots at these locations until Feb. 22.

The new program, meant to get more people voting early and increase participation, seemed to be off to a sputtering start at the Irvine mall. Wintrode and Jumper said 30 people had cast votes since the program was launched on Tuesday.

On Friday night, Wintrode said a group of revelers from a nearby bar wandered in. One tried to vote, she said, but was not registered in the county.

“Yes, they were trying to test us a little bit,” said Wintrode, 60, who has worked for the county’s elections office for 36 years. She gave the group voter registration forms and sent them on their way.

She expected business to pick up over the weekend.

Next to her, four voting stations were lined up. Each was outfitted with the county’s new electronic voting machines. The machines, about the size of a sheet of legal paper, have knobs that voters use to highlight and select the candidates and ballot measures of their choice, and an “enter” button to register votes.

The machines are powered by batteries that last up to 18 hours, so they are not vulnerable to power outages, explained Jumper, 64, a retired teacher from Anaheim.

“Some people are afraid of new technology,” Jumper said, “but I think this is great.”

By midafternoon, a dozen people had cast votes at the Irvine mall.

Philip Lisi, 46, of Costa Mesa, was the first to vote Saturday. Combining shopping with civic duty seems natural and American, he said. “You can support the economy, and vote at the same time.”

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Kiosk hours

Through Feb. 22, voters registered in Orange County may cast an early ballot in the March primary election at the malls listed:

Brea Mall (Orange Fwy. and Imperial Hwy.):Monday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Buena Park Mall (La Palma and Stanton avenues): Monday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Irvine Spectrum (71 Fortune Drive): Every day: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

MainPlace/Santa Ana (2800 N. Main St.): Monday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Shops at Mission Viejo (I-5 and Crown Valley): Monday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Parkway; Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Westminster Mall (Goldenwest St. and Bolsa Ave.): Monday through Saturday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Source: Orange County Registrar of Voters