New York’s June 26 primary where Republicans chose Manhattan lawyer Wendy Long as their nominee for U.S. Senate just missed setting a record-low for voter turnout in Onondaga County, according to the final unofficial tally. A total of 4,105 people voted out of 85,374 active Republicans enrolled in Onondaga County, according to the Board of Elections. It amounts to a voter turnout of 4.8 percent. That means the record-low of 4.6 percent is safe for now. That record was set it in the 2006 U.S. Senate GOP primary when John Spencer defeated K.T. McFarland for the party’s nomination.
In the 2006 primary, Onondaga County had a higher number of voters – 4,403 – than this year. But 2006 stands as the record low percentage for turnout because there were more enrolled Republicans than today. Any way you look at it, this year’s primary was expensive on a per-vote basis. It cost Onondaga County’s Board of Elections $36.30 for every person who voted, according to figures compiled by The Post-Standard.
Full Article: The cost of democracy? $36.30 per voter in Onondaga County | syracuse.com.