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Low turnout marks off-year ballot
Only 26.7 percent of the county's registered voters went to the polls for the "off-year" or municipal election.
"Turnout was low," said Greene County Commissioner Pam Snyder, who visited polling places during the day. "There was some activity outside the polls where there were contested races, but unfortunately not a whole lot of voters."
Compared to last year's general election, the difference was great, Snyder said. A year earlier, with the office of president of the United States on the line, voter turnout in Greene County was 64.15 percent.
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"Very few people were passing out information at the polls I visited, and it was just very, very slow," he said.
The lack of major state races and the many municipal and school board contests that had been decided in the spring probably contributed to the low turnout, Trader said.
The state judicial races also didn't seem to generate much enthusiasm, which Snyder called unfortunate.
She spoke particularly about the state Supreme Court race featuring Democrat Jack Panella and Republican Joan Orie Melvin and its importance in determining which party is in the majority on the court. The court now has three Democrats and three Republicans.
"People don't view the court as being political, but they make a lot of decisions that affect the political climate," Snyder said.
One very important issue the court will probably have to address will involve the upcoming redistricting of congressional and legislative districts after the 2010 census, she said.
"It's hard to generate enthusiasm for people you don't know, but every election, whether it's for president or the local school board, is important," Snyder said.
Voters also elected four judges to the state Superior Court and two to the state Commonwealth Court.
On the county level, candidates faced no opposition. They included Sheriff Richard C. Ketchem, Coroner Gregory P. Rohanna and Jury Commissioners Lynn Leathers and Rosalind B. Laur.
In each township, voters elected at least one supervisor, and in each borough they elected a mayor and at least two council members. Races for auditor, tax collector, constable and local boards of election also appeared on the ballot.
Voters decided races in three of the five county school districts. More complete results of Tuesday's election will be published in Thursday's newspaper or can viewed on the Greene County web site at www.co.greene.pa.us/elections.
Unofficial results late Tuesday for the three school districts in which there were races were as follows.
In Carmichaels Area School District, five candidates vied for four seats. The apparent winners and their vote totals were Richard Krause, 765; Jason Voithofer, 796; Dean Swaney, 727; and Peter Shlosky, 570. Fred Clark Jr. received 554 votes.
In Jefferson-Morgan, five candidates vied for four seats. The apparent winners were Debbie Phillips, 873; Bob Mitchell, 828; John W. Shaffer III, 771; and Mark Pochron, 876. John Cantoni received 546 votes.
Six candidates were on the ballot for the four seats in Southeastern Greene. The apparent winners and their vote totals were Ed Kamenos, 511; Janet Pennington, 603; Leonard Novak, 531; and Sam Cossick, 527. Candidates Ginny Eberhart and Don Humbert received 357 votes and 344 votes, respectively.
The unofficial tally of election results Tuesday did not include absentee ballots. Those ballots will be opened and counted on Nov. 24.
A printing error omitted the back side of the first page of some absentee ballots, leaving the ballots incomplete.
As a result, those whose absentee ballots were returned by the Oct. 30 deadline will be contacted, and they can receive a replacement page that they can use to complete their ballot.
Of the 229 absentee ballots mailed to voters, 197 were returned by the Oct. 30 deadline, according to the elections office.
It was not known how many absentee ballots might be missing the back side of the first page. Candidates or their representatives can attend the absentee ballot canvass, which will begin at 9 a.m. Nov. 24, said elections office Director Frances Pratt.
