Civic pride should be running high in Jefferson County, since ballot tallies show it to have the highest voter turnout in the Nov. 4 general election of any county in the state.
As of Tuesday, it tops the list of 39 counties with 20,180 returned ballots, or 91.065 percent, of the 22,160 of the ballots mailed to registered voters.
Clallam County was 16th in the state, with 85.3 percent voter turnout.
Topping the 90 percent mark is a first for Jefferson County, said Donna Eldridge, Jefferson County auditor.
Eldridge said she couldn’t recall the last time Jefferson County had the highest voter turnout in the state but added that it is consistently in the top five.
In May 2007, Jefferson County, which has 76.95 percent of its residents registered to vote, received the Voter Outreach Award from Secretary of State Sam Reed.
In Clallam County, 39,061 voters returned their ballots out of the 45,766 mailed to registered voters.
Although higher than normal, the number is 252 ballots votes shy of the record of 85.9 percent in the 2004 general election, said Clallam County Auditor Patty Rosand.
Clallam County can still reach that mark because 252 is also the number of ballots that, as of Tuesday, will go before the Clallam County Canvassing Board for signature verification.
Rosand said it is “very unlikely” that all of the ballots will be accepted by the canvassing board but added that a handful of additional ballots, postmarked no later than Nov. 4, still could be received from overseas.
“We’ll have to see,” she said, when asked if those ballots could make up for those not accepted by the canvassing board.
Turnout high statewide
The higher-than-normal voter turnout in both counties this year is reflected elsewhere in the state.
The Secretary of State’s Office announced on Tuesday that voter turnout in the general election surpassed the 3 million mark statewide, or 82.69 percent, for the first time.
The turnout in Jefferson County fell slightly short of Eldridge’s prediction of 92 percent. But that does little, if anything, to dampen her excitement.
“Personally, it makes me very happy,” she said.
“I think it’s reflective of how involved our citizenship are.
“One vote can make a difference, and I think that our citizens know that.”
Rosand predicted 87 percent voter participation, and referred to this election as having an “excellent turnout.”
During the last two presidential elections, the voter turnout averaged 86.64 percent in Jefferson County and 83.45 percent in Clallam County.
Eldridge and Rosand attribute the increased voter participation to a unique presidential election as well as to interesting local elections.
“The presidential race was the main thing,” Rosand said.
“But lots of it is also the publicity for the [Clallam County Public Utility District Commission] race and [Clallam County] commissioner race.”
Eldridge said the Port Townsend School District’s $35.6 million bond, which failed with 55.73 percent approval, and Proposition 1, which passed with 53.27 percent approval to allow the Jefferson County Public Utility District the authoirty to provide electrical power in the county, were key to getting out the vote in Jefferson County.
The bond issue needed a “super majority,” or 60 percent approval, to pass.
The general election results won’t be certified until Nov. 25, and both counties expect to receive by then only a handful of additional ballots that were postmarked by Nov. 4.
Fifty questionable ballots that must be reviewed by the Jefferson County Canvassing Board for signature verification, Eldridge said.
Eldridge said that, in addition to interesting races, the political parties in Jefferson County deserve a lot of the credit for high voter turnout because of their work in registering voters.
“They do a fine job,” she said.
Though counting for the general election is almost complete, Eldridge said her staff is already working on a Chimacum School District special election for Feb. 3.
That election would be for two property tax levies, one for 95.7 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation that would raise $2.037 million in 2009, and one for $1 per $1,000 assessed valuation that would raise $2.139 million, said Karen Cartmel, chief deputy auditor.
“We’re already gearing up for the next one,” Eldridge said.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or tom.callis@ peninsuladailynews.com.
