In Low Turnout, Primary Poll Consolidation Could Mean Savings

Voter turnout for the 2012 presidential primary in Manchester has been dismally low so far Tuesday, according to Republican Registrar Timothy Becker. 

As of 2 p.m., only 381 of the town's 5,004 registered Republicans had cast a ballot to vote. That's a total of 7.8 percent of registered Republican voters in town. 

Becker said that in the 2008 presidential primary, 35.5 percent of registered Republicans in town turned out to vote, and 53.3 percent of registered Democrats. In 2000, the last time prior to that there was a Republican presidential primary, Becker said that 39.7 percent of registered Republicans turned out to vote. 

Yet today's primary is costing Manchester roughly $15,000 to run eight polling places, print the ballots and in assorted overtime and miscellaneous costs – a common dilemma statewide.

A number of registrars across the state are backing a senate bill proposed by Simsbury Democratic Registrar Karen Cortes intended to save municipalities money in this situation.

Cortes will meet with lobbyists on Wednesday to discuss Senate Bill 218, "An Act Concerning Polling Places for Primaries." It would allow registrars to operate fewer poling places when voter turnout is expected to be low. 

"I'm absolutely in favor," Clark said. "This would have been much easier to handle."

Cortes wrote in an email to Clark that New York, Rhode Island and Delaware, which also have primaries Tuesday, "allow Registrars to take this cost-saving measure." She also indicated that Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill, Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, Connecticut Conference of Small Towns, the Registrar of Voters Association of Connecticut and Town Clerks Association all support the bill.

"I think everybody believes that it's already decided and it's not a contest any longer," Becker said when asked for his opinion on today's low turnout. 

After a protracted primary fight at the beginning of the year, Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, has all but sewn up the nomination in recent weeks as he has continued to win or perform strongly in primaries that carry a large number of delegates, while more and more of his opponents have dropped out of the race. 

Clark urges anyone in favor of the bill to reach out to their state senators via email or through letters.

"This is the best medicine we could ask for," Clark said.

The session closes in two weeks and before the bill can be considered, the Government Administration and Election Committee in the state senate needs to review it and bring it up, Clark said.

The senate would need to approve it, followed by the state House of Representatives before Gov. Dannel P. Malloy could sign it, she said.

Correction: An earlier version of this story referred to numbers from the 2010 Republican presidential primary - which never occured. That primary was held in 2008.