A New England woman who voted early in the 2020 Presidential Election said she has voted in every presidential election since 1932.
Emma Pezza, 109, of Johnston, is the oldest Rhode Island resident to vote in the 2020 Presidential Election, according to the Secretary of State's office via WPRI. Pezza told WPRI that she's voted in every presidential election since turning 21 and voted by mail this year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“I have to make sure I know what I’m doing and vote for the right party,” Pezza told WPRI.
The Secretary of State's Office confirmed Pezza was one of more than 294,000 Rhode Island residents to vote before Election Day, which included 155,000 ballots sent by mail.
Pezza said she participated in her first presidential election in 1932 when Herbert Hoover faced Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
"There wasn't so much commotion in those days," Pezza told WPRI.
She believes this year's election is much different than the first she participated in, calling it the most contentious she's ever witnessed.
“I never saw an election like this, never,” Pezza told WPRI.
Pezza told WPRI that her secret to living so long was that "God was good to me and I throw in a Southern Comfort once in a while."
The Secretary of State's Office told WPRI that it expects less votes to be cast on Election Day due to the high early voting numbers.