FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. — After a fiery first presidential debate, some Northern Virginia voters said watching Tuesday’s night sparring match motivated them to head to the polls early.
“I was probably going to vote early anyway in person, but his [President Donald Trump] comments on the election, and his inability to say that he would go with the decision of the American people, pushed me out here today,” voter Sharon Harroun Peirce said.
Peirce was one of hundreds in line at the Fairfax County Government Center where election officials said at the end of the day averaged about a 90-minute wait.
While people were waiting, WUSA9 asked what they thought of the first debate.
“I pretty much had my mind made up,” Rose Tinger said. “I've been looking at CNN, I've been looking at Fox News, I've been looking at everything. I already had my mind made up, but I wanted to be sure to hear the first debate. The debate itself didn't make up my mind. I think there was too much bickering on both sides.”
Tinger said she never misses voting in an election, but had she not watched last night, she might not have been out voting Wednesday.
“I felt nauseated through most of it and embarrassed for our country," Harroun Peirce said. "It certainly wasn't the way that the presidential debates have been conducted in the past and I felt we missed a whole lot. Apart from just being embarrassed, we didn't get to really focus on issues like we should have, and it was a loss.”
Bob Peirce echoed that sentiment.
“I think the failure to condemn white supremacy was probably the most grotesque, but it's a pretty tough competition between bad bits of that debate,” Bob Peirce said. “It’s essential to vote early because there are doubts about what would happen if the result on the day is not the final result."
In Northern Virginia, voters have had the option to vote early for more than a week. Virginia voters previously had to have a reason for voting early or by mail, but a new law got rid of the requirement.
RELATED: Early voting in Virginia begins for 2020 presidential election. Here’s everything you need to know
What is on the ballot in Virginia?
Voters in the Commonwealth will be casting their ballots in the race for president and vice president.
One U.S. Senate seat is up for grabs. That race is between incumbent Sen. Mark Warner (D) and Republican candidate Daniel Gade.
There are 11 seats for the U.S. House of Representatives on the ballot.
Additionally, voters are deciding on two amendments to the Virginia constitution.
One amendment change would allow disabled veterans to be exempt from taxes on their vehicles, and the second change would create a redistricting commission in charge of outlining voting districts.
There are also several local races depending on where voters live.