Despite a hot election season, data from Tuesday’s primary reveals the majority of registered Florida voters decided not to cast their ballots in the contest. The final numbers statewide were around 22-23%.
Faye Smith is a Duval County voter and said she did not get a chance to vote Tuesday.
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“I wish I had voted because I normally vote,” Smith said. “I just couldn’t make it. Had so much going on, I just couldn’t have made it.”
Several voters News4JAX spoke to on Wednesday said they regretted not casting their ballot Tuesday. They’re not alone in their decision not to vote for the primaries.
According to the Duval County Supervisor of Elections website, the final number was 19% voter turnout. The Supervisor of Elections, Jerry Holland, said there were several important races people should have come out to vote for.
“A lot of people think that decisions in some of these races will not be decided until November,” Holland said. “The reality is, we had races tonight that are decided. School board races that are over, judicial races.”
Some other local counties did not do much better in terms of turnout. Clay County’s voter turnout was 18%. Despite competitive contests for sheriff, school board, and county commission, voter turnout for St. Johns was just 25%.
Dr. Michael Binder with the Public Opinion Research Lab at UNF says these numbers should change because all elections are important.
“There’s been so much more attention talked about for school board races and the impact in schools. Three of the four that were on the ballot were decided, and they’re over,” Dr. Binder said. “These are meaningful positions that can impact you locally, and who those folks are can probably impact your life day to day, more so than maybe some of the federal elections that generate all the attention.”
Dr. Binder also points to a number of reasons why some people may have chosen to stay at home. One has to do with the top of the ticket.
“Yes, there was nominal competition for Rick Scott and Debbie Mucarsel- Powell, but they each got, 80, 90% of the vote,” Dr. Binder explained. “It wasn’t a particularly contentious race, and that didn’t get a lot of eyes. I know this sounds crazy, but a lot of folks didn’t even know that they could vote.”
With this statement, Dr. Binder is talking about people registered as “No Party Affiliated”. Though Florida is a closed primary, NPAs can vote in universal primary contests.
While the majority of counties in Northeast Florida had low voter turnout, Baker and Union Counties were notable exceptions. 51% of Baker County voters cast their ballots for sheriff, superintendent of schools, county judge, and two commission seats. Union County also finished with 41%.
“Some of these counties tend to be very Republican, and the demographics of those counties tend to be folks that vote more,” Dr. Binder said. “Those down-ballot races, they might be your neighbor. They might be your friend that are on the ballot because the communities are so small, people actually know who they are.”
Carl Dawson did vote in Tuesday’s primary. Like many, he’s thinking ahead to November.
“I think everybody should vote,” Dawson said. “They should study everybody they’re going to vote for and make the right decision.”
“There’s so much going on around the world,” Smith said. “I’m hoping they get everything taken care of, and I hope everything works out for the best.”
Bradford and Flagler Counties also had below 30% voter turnout. Putnam had 31% and Nassau finished with 29%.