Photo by Ernest E. Hardt.

Good morning, Washington. It has finally arrived: the day where I (more likely than not) get to drop the “presumptive” from Vince Gray’s Mayor-elect title. Polls in the District opened up at 7 a.m. this morning, and you can get most of the information you need on voting here. While many of you might think that voting in the general election in D.C. is nothing more than a mere formality, that couldn’t be further from the truth — there are plenty of things worth heading to the polls for today, even if you live in the District. Today is the day where single member districts make a decision on ANC commissioners, and there is no shortage of reasons why those decisions are important to voters. There is also the vote on the proposed amendment to the city’s charter which would turn attorney general into an elected position, school board races, and Republican challenges which have been getting a lot of press in Wards 1, 3, 5 and 6. Of course, we’re also keeping an eye on races in Maryland and Virginia, including what is predicted to be a gubernatorial reelection win for Martin O’Malley and a very tight bellwether race in Virginia’s 11th District between Gerry Connelly and Republican retrocessionist Keith Fimian. D.C.’s Board of Elections and Ethics are promising a well-oiled election today, including improvements at polling locations and a quicker release of partial results — our Martin Austermuhle will be live-tweeting from BOEE headquarters tonight. (Here’s hoping he doesn’t have to be there for quite as long as he was last time.) Polls close at 8 in D.C. and 7 in Maryland and Virginia, so go vote!

Overnight Fires Claim Life, Displace Several: A woman was killed last night in a fire at a senior living community at 1200 Delaware Avenue SW late last night. One other woman was injured in that fire before it was controlled. Meanwhile, an early morning blaze at a home on the 2800 block of Sherman Avenue NW has displaced 11 people — including three children — and caused about $20,000 in damages. No injuries were reported in the Sherman Avenue fire.

Owner of Venue For Gray/Brown Victory Party Has A Tax Problem: Later this evening, Vince Gray and Kwame Brown, the presumptive (had to get one last “presumptive” in there!) Mayor and Council Chair-elects, will hold a victory party at Love nightclub at 1350 Okie Street NE. But NBC4’s Tom Sherwood reported yesterday that the co-owners of that club, Marc and Ann Barnes, owe the city over $860,000 in back taxes, including $630,381 related to their business ventures. Of course, financial difficulties aren’t the only issue the Barnes have had recently — back on New Year’s, a stabbing led to the closure of the club for nearly three months.

Yes, But Did She Scoop The Poop?: Ah, Halloween, a time when people go out into the community with their adorably dressed pets and show them off to the neighborhood, even when their pet is a wild animal. Alayna Sitterson, a Herndon woman who took her fox, “Swiper,” out for a stroll on Sunday morning, has been charged with unlawful possession of wildlife by Fairfax County police. The craziest part of the story — I mean, besides the fact that there are apparently breeders who will sell you a fox to keep domestically — is that Sitterson managed to get a skeleton costume on a fox.

Briefly Noted: Large water main break closes portions of Pennsylvania Avenue this morning…Doll hanging from a noose and marked with racial slurs found at Laurel church on Sunday…Man shot on 200 block of Webster Street NE this morning…D.C.’s best teachers honored at Kennedy Center last night…Got a problem with voting today? The ACLU wants to hear about it…So who wants to place bets on how many votes Adrian Fenty draws today? Losers buy drinks at tonight’s parties.

This Day in DCist: Last year, the D.C. Council was the setting for a marriage proposal; in 2008, a film crew decided to film along 18th Street NW on a busy Saturday night.