All this talk about voting and elections and voter turnout got me to thinking about my local elections. I decided to look up the vote totals from my county for various elections over the past several years, and I must say that I am shocked at how few people actually vote in some of these elections. The population of Arlington (where I live) is about 320,000 people. As of March of 2000, there were 181,767 registered voters within the city. That's not a horrible number considering the population, but it is clear that there are large numbers of Arlington residents who aren't even registered to vote. Looking at the municipal elections was the most disheartening. These are elections for the Mayor and the City Council as well as for some bond issues (such as a flood relief bond issue that we had a couple of years ago. The Ballpark tax would also probably count). These votes are to put in the people who are closest to us in regards of Government. The people who make the policies that make our city run. The highest voter turnout for a muni election was about 33,000 voters. That was a special January vote to approve the Ballpark in 1991. A high turnout for a Mayoral/City Council/School Board Election (which are held in May) is about 15,000 voters. So in a city of 320,000 people, only 15,000 could be bothered to show up at the polls and pull the lever (well, color in the lines, we don't use punch ballots in Tarrant County) for a candidate for local election. Some city councilmen won with only around 1,500 votes total cast in their district. It's even worse in Dallas. Dallas has over 1 million people, but they routinely get less than 35,000 total voters for their Mayoral/City Council/School Board elections. It's truly amazing to me. Of course, I am part of the problem. I've never voted in an Arlington municipal election, and I didn't actually go vote last Tuesday, either. I'm taking it upon myself to start showing up for these elections, though. ------------------ Houston Sports Board The Anti-Bud Adams Page
"The population of Arlington (where I live) is about 320,000 people. As of March of 2000, there were 181,767 registered voters within the city. That's not a horrible number considering the population, but it is clear that there are large numbers of Arlington residents who aren't even registered to vote." (Sorry, I'm not sure how to quote) Just out of curiosity...how many of those not registered are under 18, not a citizen, a convicted felon, or otherwise not meet the requirements to register, because that seems like a good number to me. Other than that...it does seem like a pretty low turn out. ------------------
Seems understandable. Last Tuesday I voted for a bunch of people I've never heard of before and wouldn't have been at the polls at all if it wasn't for the arena. In local races, why should people who aren't familiar with any of the candidates vote? Some may chastize the voter for being so ignorant about local politics. I think it is not our responsibility to go searching for this information; if someone wants me to vote for him, he needs to present himself to me. National politicians can get on the air and on newspapers, but local ones can come knock on my door. They need to try harder. ------------------ RealGM Rockets Draft Obligations Summary http://www.gaffordstudios.cjb.net/
181,767 registered voters out of 320,000 residents is not bad at all. But, it is about 80,000 short of the total number of eligible voters according to the county clerk's office. Her numbers may not be 100% accurate, but it's probably pretty close. That is a pretty large number. ------------------ Houston Sports Board The Anti-Bud Adams Page
