Today is election day, and some voters may be praying for better days. Some candidates may be praying for votes. And others may just be praying for a miracle.

At Troy’s first “Prayer on the Square” meeting Monday, about 75 community members, including Mayor Lunsford and local pastors, gathered to encourage each other to pray for the city, the nation and our government leaders.

Organized by Women’s Life Center administrator Lois Finlay, the event attracted speakers of various Christian backgrounds to share a few words on the history of politics in the U.S. and the future of our city after today.

In Finlay’s words, the future of our nation lies not with the politicians, but with those who pray for them.

“It’s not up to the politicians, it’s up to us,” she said in an interview.

At noon, Finlay introduced the Rev. W.O. Sanders, a WWII veteran, for a short prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. The program, which lasted about a half-hour, featured words of encouragement from the Rev. Elisha Freeman, university student Brennan Ellis, and George Merritt, who urged people to vote in a shadowy political season.

“We know that this is a dark day in our country,” he said. “I think we know what the solution is to darkness.”

In the interlude, Deborah Teal and Lauren Horn sang “America the Beautiful.” As they sang, a long train whistle blew in the background.

Lunsford gave a short speech about the state of politics in Troy and the need to vote. In his talk, he mentioned a bulletin he saw tacked in an office with the words “Happy Holidays.” It was meant to be inoffensive for all religions, but for the mayor it seemed to take the “Christ” out of Christmas.

“In Troy, Alabama, we don’t have political correctness and ‘Happy Holidays,’” he said to a round of applause.

He also told potential voters to choose candidates not just on their politics, but on the merits of their characters and the strength of their beliefs.

“Go vote for the individual who you think is going into office for the right reasons,” he said.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. today.

Information about voting identification—all 26 acceptable forms—is available at http://www.pikeprobate.com/election_central.html. Also on the site are photos and locations of each precinct.

If any voters have problems with registration, identification or precincts once they reach the polls, they can ask the inspector at the polling precinct, Probate Judge Wes Allen said. Each polling precinct will be assigned an inspector, who will answer voters’ questions and address their Election Day issues.

The voting outlook is bright for Pike County this year, and elections hold the promise of turning out a solid number of voters, Allen added.

“I think it’s going to be a good turnout,” he said. “We’re just going to have to wait and see.”