Limited interest in election
BOISE – Expectations for voter turnout in Tuesday’s primary election are somewhere between low and rock bottom, mainly because there are no seriously challenged statewide races and only a handful of interesting legislative or local contests.
“We haven’t noticed a lot of intensity in the election,” Secretary of State Ben Ysursa said wryly, predicting a turnout of between 28 and 30 percent.
“The presidential primary was over a couple of months ago, and there’s nothing on the statewide basis,” to motivate voters to get to the polls, he said. “There’s just no real impetus for a big showing.”
Few surprises are expected from Tuesday’s primary, despite — or perhaps partly because of — the extraordinary backdrop of events on a national and international scale.
Between the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the sputtering national economy, record high oil prices and gay marriages happening across the country, people’s political interests seem to be aimed outward, said Boise State University political science professor Jim Weatherby.
“Do you hear a lot of people talking about local campaigns?” Weatherby said. “There are a lot of (legislative) candidates out there raising money, but I don’t know why they’re doing it.”
Weatherby’s political intuition seems to have validation outside of the Ivory Tower.
As a waiter on the graveyard shift of a 24-hour chain restaurant near Interstate 84 in Meridian, Ryan Richardson hears what’s on the minds of ordinary people all the time.
Allowing Idaho’s temporary 1 cent sales tax to expire next year isn’t one of them. Nor is how to untangle the Medicaid budget mess. In fact, state and local issues don’t even make the top 100 list of subjects, said the lanky former college football player whose career ended with an injury.
“Mostly, they’re just talking about stuff that’s happening in the bars,” the dark-haired 21-year-old said sheepishly while wiping up spilled syrup and coffee left by those some of those late-night revelers.
Among his own circle of friends, politics do occasionally come up. But the discussions focus on Iraq, where some of his friends are serving in the military.
“Everybody thinks Bush did a bad job with the whole war thing, but I don’t think that at all,” he said. “I think he did a good job — he did what needed to be done.”
For those who do show up at the polls on Tuesday, voters must choose whether they intend to vote in the Republican or Democratic races. There’s no switching between parties.
On the GOP side, there are 36 interparty challenges to incumbents or races for open seats. The Democrats have only three primary races.
One Democratic race attracting a lot of local attention is in Boise’s liberal District 19, the North End. Brian Cronin, Nicole LeFavour and Steve Scanlin are all vying to replace outgoing Rep. Ken Robison.
LeFavour, a lobbyist for environmental and social issues, is the state’s first openly gay candidate. She has raised more than $37,000 for her campaign.
LeFavour, who grew up in the Challis and Stanley area, downplays the importance of her sexual orientation. She said about half of her support is coming from the gay and lesbian community, but her campaign “is not based on that,” she said. “People know me as an articulate voice on all human rights issues.”
The Republicans also have some locally interesting races.
In Canyon County, Dolores Crow, chairwoman of the powerful House Revenue and Taxation Committee, is being challenged by four other Republicans, including Jim Barnes, former publisher of the local newspaper, the Idaho Press-Tribune.
Crow had previously said she would not seek re-election to a 12th two-year term, but she changed her mind during this past winter’s session, saying her leadership is needed to ensure that the temporary 1 cent sales tax sunsets on schedule next year.