Clark County might see the biggest turnout for any nonpresidential election by the time all ballots for the Nov. 6 general election have been counted, Auditor Greg Kimsey said Friday.
The most recent count shows Clark County Elections has already received 109,565 ballots, about 39 percent of eligible voters.
Midterm elections typically have lower turnout than presidential elections. But this time, the county’s turnout could rival presidential-year levels.
Six days before Tuesday’s election, 98,544 ballots had been returned for a turnout of 35 percent of the county’s 281,544 eligible voters, according to numbers provided by Clark County Elections Supervisor Cathie Garber.
Two years ago, when the presidential race was on the ballot, turnout was 38.36 percent six days before the election, data from Garber show. That race saw 212,280 ballots returned for a 77.67 percent total turnout of the county’s then 273,293 eligible voters.
In 2014, the last midterm election, 56,286 ballots, 22.57 percent turnout, had been cast in Clark County six days before the election. Just 51 percent or 133,808 of the county’s 249,277 eligible voters, cast ballots in that election.
Kimsey, the county’s top election official, said that earlier in the voting period there was lower than anticipated turnout that has since picked up after voters had time to digest and decide on the many candidates and issues on the ballot.
“It’s a fairly complicated ballot,” Kimsey said. “We think that people took a little more time to complete the ballot.”
It’s too late to register to vote in this election. Voters who have not received a ballot should contact the Clark County Elections Office at 564-397-2345 or elections@clark.wa.gov.
According to a county news release, ballots are not forwarded by the U.S. Postal Service. If a voter has recently moved, and the Elections Office did not receive a change of address, a ballot will be returned as undeliverable. Voters can also download a replacement ballot by going to clarkvotes.org, clicking on “Need a Replacement Ballot?” and following the instructions.
Ballots must be postmarked by Tuesday to be counted when voting by mail. The deadline to return a ballot through one of the county’s seven permanent ballot drop boxes is 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Kimsey said that if someone seriously supports a write-in candidate, they should do so. But he noted that election workers have to take time to record write-ins.
“If you’re interested in reducing the cost of government, only using the write-in for serious candidates is one way to do that,” he said.
