24th District incumbent Ben Cline thanks his supporters along with his wife Elizabeth and parents at the election evening party at Salerno's after being declared the 24th District winner by Channel 7 on Tuesday evening, November 3rd. Cline said he is looking forward to returning to Richmond to work with a Republican Governor for the first time where he will work for the people and not the other way around. (Photo by Patte Wood)

Election Night Photos By Patte Wood Staff Reporter   There was a large turnout of voters throughout Rockbridge on Election Day 2009 with over 50% of Goshen and Highland Belle voters going to the polls and four busloads of voters from Kendal going to their polling place. With the new technology, returns started coming in shortly after the polls closed and the local contests were wrapped up by 8 p.m. Alas, this was the first year that Circuit Court Clerk Bruce Patterson did not post totals on a board in the courthouse lobby and said that those days are over. However, several candidates did come by the registrars office in the County Administration Building to check totals. With the tradition of folks gathering at the courthouse to watch the totals coming in along with their opponents gone, the personal face of community elections is now a thing of the past and this reporter thinks that is a great loss. Kerrs Creek magisterial district Supervisor incumbent Rusty Ford (middle) and School Board candidate Terry Bsullak (right) checks the numbers with electoral board worker Scott Belliveau (left) at the registrar's office on the evening of November 3rd. Ford was unopposed and received 1049 votes and Bsullak lost to Ben Swisher by a small margin of votes - 527 to 631. (Photo by Patte Wood) Electoral Board member Wanda Early takes down the results from Rockbridge voting district at the registrar's office on the evening of Tuesday, November 3rd. Early was one of three workers answering the phone to take down the voting results. (Photo by Patte Wood) County registrar Marilyn Earhart posts Rockbridge County voting results on the Virginia Electoral Board website as they come in on the evening of Tuesday, November 3rd as Jan Jarrard (out of photo) reads them off to her. It was a long day for all those who worked nonstop throughout the election. (Photo by Patte Wood)

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