It might be an off-year primary election but that doesn’t mean there aren’t important ballot decisions for Butler County voters Tuesday.

There are statewide and countywide races in play, as well as key municipal races.

Still, there is a sense that voters — again — might grade this as yet another ho-hum primary.

“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of interest,” acknowledged Shari Brewer, director of the county Bureau of Elections.

A low-key municipal primary over time has become the norm in Butler County. That’s why Brewer is predicting a relatively low turnout Tuesday.

“I’m guessing it’s going to be like the last commissioner municipal election (in 2007),” Brewer said.

Four years ago, 28 percent of eligible primary voters showed up at the polls.

There’s another reason why Brewer thinks history will repeat itself.

Absentee ballots turned in this time around, she noted, are comparable to the number received in 2007.

Additionally, voter registrations are running about the same as last year.

There are 117,178 registered voters in the county, but only those registered as Republicans or Democrats can vote in the primary.

In all, there are 59,376 Republicans and 43,634 Democrats eligible to vote, according to county voter registration records.

Of the county’s entire electorate, Republicans account for 51 percent and Democrats for 37 percent.

An additional 14,168 voters, accounting for the other 12 percent, are either registered with third parties or not affiliated with any party.

Any unanticipated spike in turnout Tuesday could be driven by the hotly-contested county commissioners’ race with six Republicans and three Democrats running.

Voters in each party will nominate a pair of candidates to run for the three-member Butler County Board of Commissioners in the fall.

Come next January when the next board is sworn in, there will be at least one new face since longtime Republican Commissioner Jim Kennedy opted not to seek re-election.

The only other countywide offices up this year are for district attorney and treasurer.

District Attorney Richard Goldinger and Treasurer Diane Marburger are unopposed in the GOP primary. There are no Democrats running for those posts.

Voters, however, also will nominate candidates for township supervisor and borough council, not to mention school board and, in some municipalities, district judge.

But not just a few areas lack a full slate of local candidates.

The only statewide races, meanwhile, will be to nominate a judge for Superior Court and Commonwealth Court.