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Voter turnout light in Albany

By Karen Cohilas - bio | email

ALBANY, GA (WALB) - It's municipal election day in Georgia. Dozens of local races in our area are being decided today, from mayor's race, to city council and school board seats.

In Albany, only one city commission race is on the ballot and voter turnout is pretty dismal. There are just more than 5600 registered voters in Ward Three.

At the half-way point Tuesday, one o'clock, only 238 of them had shown up to cast a vote for either Arthur Williams or Christopher Pike for the city commission seat. That's less than 5-percent turnout.

We were at Covenant Presbyterian Church earlier today where voters were just trickling in, one or two at a time. The advantage of small crowds is that there isn't a line, of course.

Voter Charles Findley says no matter how many or how few names are on the ballot, it's your responsibility to cast one.  He said, "I think if they vote, they can have a voice in it, but if not, they should keep their mouths shut."

And from the looks of it, it seems as though there may be lots of quiet folks in Ward three during the next four years.

Of course, your chance to vote isn't over. You have until seven o'clock to get to your precinct and cast your ballot tonight.

Only precincts in Ward 3 are open for voting, there are six of them. Two other city commission races up for election, Wards 2 and 5, are uncontested.

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