Voter turnout sets new records

Residents of DeKalb’s precincts 31 and 32 went to the park district’s Sports and Recreation Center to cast their ballots Tuesday afternoon. Chronicle photo ERIC SUMBERG

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Tuesday's primary election set records for both DeKalb County and the state, election officials said Wednesday. About half of all registered voters in DeKalb County cast a ballot in Tuesday's primary election, according to the county clerk's office. And nearly 33 percent of Illinois' eligible voters - that is, legal residents 18 or older - cast votes in the primary election, American University's Center for the Study of the American Electorate said Wednesday. The previous record was 29.7 percent in 1980, the organization said. While vote totals from the DeKalb County Clerk's Office show nearly 77 percent of registered voters turned out - a different measure than the one used by American University in Washington, D.C. - County Clerk Sharon Holmes said that method factors in the total number of ballots cast. In most elections, that would equal voter turnout - but a special primary election for the 14th Congressional District also was held Tuesday, which means many voters cast not one but two ballots. Holmes said her office is in the process of subtracting the special primary ballots from the regular primary ballots and hopes to have a final breakdown by Friday. Holmes estimated actual voter turnout to be about 50 percent - still a big increase from the 30 percent turnout from previous primary elections, she noted. A likely draw statewide was the prospect of choosing between two presidential candidates with Illinois connections: U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., who grew up in Illinois. Curtis Gans, director of the Center for the Study of the American Electorate, said 22.7 percent of eligible voters took part in the Illinois Democratic primary, setting a new record. The previous record was 21 percent, set in 1984. Republican turnout was 10 percent, far from the 14.4 percent record in 1980. A number of issues brought DeKalb County residents to the polls. “Why not? It's our right,” said 21-year-old Ryan Hermann, who voted at Resource Bank in Genoa. “I think we owe it to everyone who fought hard for the freedom to vote and for those who still don't have it,” said 29-year-old Sean Henson of Sycamore, who voted at the Sycamore Public Library. Craig Gilbertson of DeKalb makes a point to vote regularly and cast his votes at Hopkins Park's Terrace Room. “It's interesting what can happen within our state and nationally,” he said. “I came here to support Obama and (Democratic 14th Congressional District candidate John) Laesch.” And throughout the day, multiple DeKalb residents at several precincts told Daily Chronicle reporters that the $110 million construction referendum placed on the ballot by the DeKalb School District propelled them to vote. Preparing for this year's election was a new experience for Holmes' office, mainly because staff were running two elections: the regular primary and the special primary. “Never have you gone to a polling place before and be given two ballots,” Holmes said. “There was a lot of confusion about that on both sides.” Some voters or judges may not have known that voters could ask for one party's ballot for the general primary and a different party's ballot for the special primary, she said. Holmes said her staff tried to meet with at least one election judge in each precinct to educate them about how to run two elections simultaneously. One problem her office had was running out of ballots at some precincts in the cities of DeKalb and Sycamore. Her staff had planned for about 50 percent voter turnout, she said, even though they've never had much higher than 30 percent turnout for a primary. As calls started coming in from election judges, her staff printed more ballots in the office and ran them out to the polls, Holmes said. “I hope no one didn't get to vote that wanted to. I want to apologize publicly for anyone who had to wait for a ballot or come back,” she said. “Election judges would call as soon as they were getting low. We're very fortunate here in the county to have the ability to print ballots. I had everyone in my office running here, there and everywhere.” One potential problem that didn't materialize and had worried Holmes was inclement weather. Initial forecasts predicted snow would start falling in most of the county Tuesday evening. But it held off until after midnight, and Holmes said no one had trouble getting their tallies to her office in Sycamore. Daily Chronicle staff reporters and The Associated Press contributed to this report. City Editor Kate Schott can be reached at kschott@daily-chronicle. com.