Attendance low at Butler County polls
As the polls opened on the morning of Tuesday, May 20, for the primary election, the one thing missing was the voters, at least during the early morning hours.
According to Sharron Russell, judge of elections for Cranberry Township West 3 precinct, just under 70 people had come in to vote between 7 and 10:30 a.m., which is on par with similar primary elections.
“We have a significant number of people in this precinct who come in and vote every election,” Russell said. “But how you interest people to come out who only come out for the presidential election, I’m not really sure. You have to convince them local government matters.”
Seats up for the general election in November are judge roles, school board members and the county coroner. The primary election, however, had a good amount of uncontested races on the Democratic and Republican sides.
One scanner needed to be replaced at a precinct in Cherry Valley, which Butler County Bureau of Elections director Chantell McCurdy said was addressed before it affected any voters.
Russell said her precinct saw about 80% turnout for the presidential election last year, but for the primary, she anticipates to see a voter turnout closer to 10%.
“This particular primary tends to be slow,” Russell said. “We are coming off the presidential election and everything seems quiet compared to that. The day isn’t done yet. We always have a steady trickle.”
Tami Lenhard, a clerk for the Cranberry West 3 precinct, said she has worked the polls before and she views it as her way to make a difference in her community.
“I feel like it’s part of my civic duty to help,” Lenhard said. “I’m not the person who would run for office, but I do feel I need to do something. We are not volunteers and we get paid, but I feel I have done my civic duty.”
Cranberry Township resident Kevin Williamson said he was compelled to vote because he knows a judge candidate running who he thinks would do a good job in the position.
“You can’t complain if you don’t vote,” Williamson said. “You got to do your civic duty. Whether you candidate wins or looses I think you have to still come out and vote.”
James Crawford, of Butler, went out to vote Tuesday morning and said he almost never misses a primary election because of his thoughts towards local government.
“It’s local and to me that is where the grassroots are,” Crawford said.
Butler city resident Millie Pinkerton, who was campaigning for John Scialabba for Judge of the Butler County Court of Common Pleas, also said she always comes out to vote, even in the primaries, because a lot of people lost their lives to give us the right to vote.
Pinkerton is also expressed her concerns with how the City of Butler will move forward with the spending of the BASA sale funds.
“I think we need to have good leaders who will spend that money wisely,” Pinkerton said. “I vote for Republican or Democrat. If the person has common sense that is who I would vote for.”
