Local Board of Elections officials said the voter turnout for Tuesday’s primary election was a bit disappointing.
“I think we all expected more,” said Myron Priest, a member of the local board, describing the 41.19 percent voter turnout. According to unofficial results, there were a total of 6,484 ballots cast (not including provisional ballots) out of the 15,740 registered voters.
“Everything went smoothly,” said board member Robin Beekman. “But it was not a turnout like we thought. On the positive side, the election went very smooth and there weren’t any major issues. This board has always worked very well together and it’s a hard working board.”
Given that temperatures were in the 70s for a good portion of the day Tuesday, the newest board member Dan Roberts said he had hoped there would be a stronger turnout. “But we appreciate those who did come and vote,” he said. “Being my first time doing this, I’m just very impressed with the teamwork and all of the preparation, and the intricacies that go into the voting process. I’m very appreciative of the team here, the workers here and all of the poll workers. Everybody pulled together to make this a very good and fair election.”
Roberts, former Miami Trace Local Schools Superintendent, was appointed to the board in early January. He will fill the unexpired term of David Bihl, who resigned in order to continue to be covered by the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. Bihl had served on the local board of elections since Jan. 11, 2000.
The chairperson of the local board, Judy Craig, said that she also expected a larger turnout. “We didn’t have nearly the numbers that we had in the 2008 presidential primary and it was a little more comparable to 2012,” she said. “But everyone worked very well together to make this a good election.”
Of the 6,484 ballots cast, 1,319 were Democratic, 5,154 were Republican, seven were the Green party, and four were non-partisan, according to unofficial totals.
The only individuals running for county offices were in the Republican primary and all were unopposed. Court of Common Pleas Judge Steven Beathard received 4,053 votes, County Commissioner Tony Anderson received 3,887 votes, County Commissioner Dan Dean received 3,838 votes, Prosecuting Attorney Jess Weade received 3,998 votes, Clerk of Common Pleas Court Evelyn A. Pentzer received 3,950 votes, Sheriff Vernon Stanforth received 4,165 votes, County Recorder Cathy Templin received 3,961 votes, County Treasurer Susan Dunn received 4,047 votes, County Engineer Steve Luebbe received 3,921 votes, and Coroner Dennis Mesker received 3,982 votes.
