Voter Giovanni Peña and his dog, Optimist, both longtime residents of Bell, came out early to vote.

Just a few hours after polls opened, many Bell residents had cast their votes, but the biggest turnout seems to be from candidates and reporters waiting for the outcome.

Cristina Garcia of the Bell Association to Stop the Abuse estimates that 60 percent of voters will cast ballots.

“I’m hoping that I’m wrong,” Garcia says, “not because I guessed too high, but because I guessed too low.”

Griselda Garcia, 56, has lived in Bell for more than two decades and wants to help set her city back on the right course.

“We’re working here because we want a change for all the people who live in the city.”

Eight current and former city officials face charges in a municipal ripoff that made headlines nationwide when the L.A. Times broke the story in July.  All five City Council seats are up for grabs in the Southeast L.A. County city rocked by the news that councilmembers paid themselves $100,000 salaries. The mayor and two council members face recalls and a third resigned from the council torn by felony public corruption charges.

Most of the candidates are political novices motivated to run to try to turn around their city.

Voter Carlos Avina, 49, supported his friends on the Justice For Bell slate by displaying a large campaign sign in the bed of his pickup truck.  He says he came out early to vote, but knows others have to wait until after work. 

“Yes, the people are coming,” Avina said. "Many people are working, but after work, after 4 o’clock, they’re coming.”
 
Voter Giovanni Peña and his dog, Optimist, both longtime residents of Bell, came out early to vote. 

“You have a choice to choose over so many people in this city,” said Peña. “Vote and make sure you make a difference.”

But not all Bell residents will vote. Sheila Szabo, a longtime resident of Bell who campaigned for Nestor Valencia, says she’ll have to drag her husband to the polls.

“He says no one’s worth voting for; they’re all corrupt,” she said. “But they need to vote.”

Candidates waited outside of the city’s four polling places all morning, making their final push to gain as many votes as they can. 

“The day is finally here,” said candidate Violeta Alvarez.  “It’s a historical day for the residents of Bell.”

Staff Reporters Ebony Bailey, Vicki Chen, Laurel Galanter, Ali Holt, Kamille Simmons, Sarah Webb, Joshua Woo contributed to this report.