Light turnout expected as we approach tomorrow’s election

by Brian Leubitz

Field released their final piece of polling data on Halloween, this time a slew of data on the ballot measures. You can see a quick summary to the right.

In terms of turnout, well, don’t hold out high hopes.

Despite a record number of registered voters in California, some analysts are predicting the total turnout for Tuesday’s election could fall below 50 percent.

KNX 1070’s Pete Demetriou reports about 17.8 million Californians are now registered to vote – more than for any other gubernatorial general election in state history. (KCBS)

This really is big news. For the first time in our history, a general election could result in a turnout of under 50%. Perhaps it is understandable, given the lack of hotly contested statewide races. However, there are still a litany of legislative and ballot measure races that are still up in the air.

This morning I did a bit of song-and-dance as I was passing out some election material at my local subway station. And even in San Francisco, where there is a hotly contested legislative race, there is still a sense of ambivalence. Whatever the reason, I hope a few more Californians take that extra few minutes tomorrow. Democracy has its share of problems, but those are only magnified when we don’t vote.