Across Michigan, light turnout and some upset voters

Across Michigan, light turnout and some upset voters January 15, 2008 By JOHN WISELY and KATHLEEN GRAY FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS Around metro Detroit and across the state, turnout has been so low for the presidential primary that some clerks predict the majority of votes will come from absentee ballots. Clerks say snowy weather and a non-race on the Democratic side have kept numbers down. AdvertisementIn Detroit, about 20,000 people had voted at polling places around the city by mid-afternoon. An additional 23,000 absentee ballots were cast by Election Day, said city Elections Director Daniel Baxter. That represents less than 10% of the voters in the city, he said. “With the snow and in January, it’s still really dark out at 7 a.m., so maybe we’ll get 15 to 20%.” Voters weren’t complaining about not being able to write in their favorite Democratic candidate because two of the front-runners — Barack Obama and John Edwards — withdrew their names from the ballot. But several were upset about having to ask for a political party-specific ballot, which would identify if they had voted Republican or Democratic. “Some voters thought that was unconstitutional,” Baxter said. “And they ended up voting under protest.” In Troy, where about 54,000 residents are registered to vote, morning turnout was light. City Clerk Tonni Bartholomew estimated about 3,400 voters went to the polls by noon. Another 5,100 people vote absentee, she said. “I expected turnout to be higher,” Bartholomew said. “But the phone has been ringing a lot so maybe we get a dinner rush.” By 2 p.m., 6,702 Livonia residents had cast ballots, about 9.3% of the city’s 72,000 registered voters, according to the city clerk’s office. Officials expect final turnout to be above 15% of registered voters. Outstate precincts reported similar low turnouts. “It’s probably going to be something like a school board election,” said Inez Brown, clerk in heavily Democratic Flint. Brown said the equipment in Flint’s 61 precincts has worked properly and voters seem to understand that the not all the candidates are on the Democratic ballot. “So far everything has gone pretty smoothly,” Brown said. In heavily Republican Ottawa county in western Michigan, heavy snow fell throughout the morning, said Anna Perales, acting deputy city clerk in Holland. “We had a blizzardy morning,” Perales said. “It was very slow at the polls. The majority is going to be by absentee vote.”