St. Columba Catholic Church in Serra Mesa was filled with parishioners attending mass on Sunday. Many of them were praying for peace while seriously considering the possibilities of this week's Presidential Election.
“I think if people want the country to be a certain way, they have to help influence that rather than just complaining about how they want it to be," said Leigh-Anne Clabby who is visiting San Diego with her husband, Abraham, and their children.
"Can we work with each other rather than just trying to win by a fraction of a percent only to overpower them?" he said.
Next door to the sanctuary is the church hall being used as one of the county's vote centers.
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Brian Scott and his wife Donabelle registered to vote on site and then cast their ballots. They are concerned about controversy and chaos that could come Tuesday and beyond.
Donabelle Scott said, “We’re trying to avoid the line and the possible riot or violence that might happen. We prefer to vote early."
Her husband was transferred to San Diego from Maryland with the Navy. “Maybe this happened, maybe that happened. Then it can get into some kind of legal process and it drags out. I want to make sure everything is counted fairly and we have a decisive winner on election day," Brian Scott said.
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That just might not happen.
Political scientists say the uncertainty triggers a real thing called "voter anxiety" even after casting your ballot. Phil Saenz has been a professor of political science at Southwestern College for more than thirty years.
"Not only with respect to the election and who's going to win, but also the aftermath or potential aftermath," Saenz said. "If there is any disgruntled candidate. What might happen? So there's some people worried about political violence and the escalation of that type of reaction and then there's also concern about policy changes and the shifts that we might see," he said.
Leigh-Anne Clabby said she hopes for the best, "(I'd like) people being able to get along regardless of which candidates they support."
