Nov 3, 2014 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – Historically, Greene County voters have turned out in larger numbers when there are races on the ballot that affect them at home, and that doesn’t seem to be the case in this mid-term election.

First-term state Rep. Pam Snyder is unopposed today for a second term in the 50th Legislative District, and GOP Tim Murphy, who represents 22 of the county’s 44 precinct in the 18th Congressional District, also is unopposed.

That leaves county voters with three choices to make – Republican incumbent Tom Corbett or Democrat Tom Wolf for governor; incumbent Republican Bill Shuster or his Democratic challenger Alanna Hartzok in the sprawling 9th Congressional that takes in the county’s other 22 precincts; and incumbent Democrat state Sen. Tim Solobay or his GOP opponent, Camera Bartolotta in the 46th District.

Greene County Elections Director Tina Kiger was hesitant to predict turnout percentage, but she did say she believes it will be under 40 percent.

However, in the last two gubernatorial races, the percentages have been relatively high. In 2006, when Ed Rendell defeated former Pittsburgh Steeler Lynn Swann, the turnout was 51.5 percent, but that also was the year there was a contentious U.S. Senate race between Republican incumbent Rick Santorum and Bob Casey, a congressional race between incumbent Democrat John P. Murtha and Washington County Commissioner Diana Irey, and a race in the 50th Legislative District between incumbent Bill DeWeese against retired professional football player Greg Hopkins of Nineveh.

In 2010, when Corbett defeated Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato for governor, the turnout dipped to 44 percent despite a U.S. Senate race between Republican Pat Toomey and Democrat Joe Sestak; a Solobay race in the 46th and another DeWeese race in the 50th.

Perhaps it took the presidential race in 2012 to bring out Greene County voters, or was it Snyder’s statewide race against Republican Mark Fischer, or Murphy’s congressional battle with Washington County Commissioner Larry Maggi? Nonetheless, the turnout was a very respectable 65 percent.

“It’s hard to say what brings voters to the polls,” Kiger said, acknowledging, however, the “more local, the higher turnout.”

Also, the number of absentee ballots can be used as a predictor of interest and turnout in an election. The Greene County elections office has processed 275 absentee ballots, considerably lower than the 760 in 2012, the 412 in 2010 and the 576 in 2006.

The polls in Greene County’s 44 precincts will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today.