Bay Area voters head to the polls on Election Day 2016

The outcome is in your hands. Voting is underway across the Bay Area and the country. In California, the polls opened at 7 a.m. and people wasted no time being the first to vote.

ABC7 News was in Walnut Creek as people at the Rossmoor Retirement Community cast their ballots. A steady line of voters streamed in shortly after poll workers opened the doors. One resident said she has voted in every election since she turned 18. She also said she has a message for people who may be undecided about whether to go to the polls.

"I just think it's critically important for everybody to get out and vote. This is a citizen responsibility. It is something that most people in the world don't get to do and for me, it's just a really important thing," she said.

Voters that spoke with ABC7 News seemed split on their support for Clinton or Trump. The one thing they all agreed on was that they've seen some things and this election cycle was a new one, even for them.

In the East Bay, election officials are trying to keep things moving and keep voters happy. And in Martinez, it doesn't get much easier -- you can now drop off your ballot without getting out of the car. One voter liked it so much she brought donuts to thank the workers sitting at one of the drive-thrus.

But election officials say they really did this out of a need to help themselves. "We have a lot of foot traffic that additionally comes into the office, clogs the parking lot, clogs other business going on in the office," they said.

So the idea of drive-thru voting was born.

Contra Costa officials don't think the turn out will be as high as it was in 2008, the last time we didn't have a sitting president.

In the South Bay, election workers have a big day ahead of them, as Santa Clara County has a record number of registered voters.

The Justice Department is keeping a close eye on two Bay Area counties in particular today, to make sure voters are treated fairly. Monitors are at the polls in Napa and Alameda counties. Both have had violations of federal voting rights in the past.

California is one of 28 states where monitors are keeping track of things this election day.

ABC7 News is your home for complete election coverage throughout the day. We'll have an early edition of ABC7 News at 3 p.m. followed by World News Tonight. At 4 p.m. we'll begin live uninterrupted coverage of national election results. At 11 p.m., stay with us for a special hour-long edition of ABC7 News covering all the local races.

Programming Note: Due to election coverage, Tuesday evening's episodes of Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune will be shown on Wednesday in their normal time period 7-8 p.m. on ABC7.

For full coverage on the presidential election, click here.