News

April 24, 2008

Turnout for Dems over 61%

Wilkes political science prof says state primary first since 1976 to play key role.

SHERRY LONG slong@timesleader.com

WILKES-BARRE -- Luzerne County’s voter turnout in Tuesday’s Democratic primary was the highest in more than three decades, Wilkes University political science professor Tom Baldino said Wednesday.

According to results from the Luzerne County Bureau of Elections, a total of 65,391 Democrats, or 61.64 percent of all registered Democrats, cast ballots.

That’s up from the 19,632 -- or one out of five registered Democrats -- who voted in the 2004 presidential primary. Unlike this year, in ’04 then front-runner John Kerry already secured the nomination by the time Pennsylvania’s primary came around.

The historic and spirited race between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama – a woman and a black man – spurred many to head to the polls, Baldino said.

“For the first time since 1976 the Pennsylvania primary counted. The Pennsylvania voters had an opportunity (Tuesday) to influence the course of the primaries and select the Democratic nominee,” Baldino said.

Within the last two years there has seen a steady increase in Democratic voters heading to the polls, Luzerne County Democratic Party Chairman Mark Bufalino said.

He said he thinks this change is because Americans are tired of President Bush-style politics, high gas prices, ever-rising college tuition rates and not having adequate health-care coverage.

“I think historically, when people get pushed too far, they push back, and last night (Tuesday) was the beginning of their push back,” Bufalino said.

He also credits Democratic volunteers for walking door to door, making phone calls and registering new voters for the increased turnout.

But for some people the need to vote is ingrained at an early age. Voting is very important to Jane Waitkus, chairwoman for Luzerne County’s Democratic Party 2nd District. When her grandparents lived in Europe, they were not permitted to vote. After they moved to America and became naturalized citizens, they taught their families the importance of the ballot box.

“So they impressed upon my parents it’s an honor and a privilege,” Waitkus said noting to this day all her children make a point to vote each election.

The Republicans did not have much of a local turnout . Out of 59,610 registered Republicans in Luzerne County, only 19,952, or 33.47 percent of eligible voters, cast ballots in this week’s primary. Arizona Sen. John McCain already has secured his party’s presidential nomination.

Electronic updates a hit for county

Luzerne County was among 21 counties that provided electronic election return updates to the state Tuesday night, said Department of State spokeswoman Rebecca Halton.

The state has traditionally posted unofficial returns on election night. However, the state’s updates took longer because counties typically supplied their data by fax or phone, requiring manual entry by state staffers, Halton said.

“This certainly helped to expedite the process,” she said.

Luzerne County Election Bureau Director Leonard Piazza said he was informed that Luzerne was the first county to submit its electronic results to the state on Tuesday.

The county’s online posting was also popular, receiving hits from more than 450 computer users, Piazza said.

The county’s returns were in by 9:45 p.m., and results were posted online by 10:30 p.m., he said.

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