Santa Monica voters stayed away from the polls in droves Tuesday, resulting in a record low-turnout.
Only 23 percent — 16,827 out of the city’s 73,279 registered voters — went to 83-citywide polling stations to cast ballots.
Not for over a decade has resident interest in an election dipped to the level expressed this week, one city official said Some elected officials theorized that because the majority of city voters are registered Democrats and the Democratic primary was nearly unopposed, residents didn’t feel a need to vote.
“There was less reason to turn out this time because the gubernatorial election was not contested,” said Mayor Mike Feinstein. “With Gray Davis a sure winner, it made things even worse than if there had been a contested race.”
Feinstein said low voter turn out at spring elections is why the city decided in the 1980’s to change city council elections to November, when statewide races would draw more voters to the polls.
Others felt voters did a great disservice to the nation by not getting out to the polls.
“In the post 9-11 era this is an abomination,” said Peter Tigler, a ‘No on Prop U’ leader. “I guess all the flag wavers were still at the malls shopping for patriotism when it came time to vote.”
Besides the political party primaries for governor and an assortment of initiatives, local voters were asked to decide the fate of a $160 million Santa Monica College bond.
The measure was overwhelmingly approved, receiving 70 percent of the vote.
“I think that many residents who are disappointed by the college simply did not vote,” said Councilman Richard Bloom in an e-mail. “It was predicable that this election would have low voter turn out as the community is largely Democrats and there was no hotly contested Democratic race in the primary.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 7, 2002. Read the original PDF.