Low LA Voter Turnout Restarts Debate About Election Scheduling

Los Angeles held an election Tuesday and lots of people didn't bother showing up. One city leader called the initial turnout figure, just over 16%, "awful" and "embarrassing." The latest demonstration of electorate disengagement renewed discussions about rescheduling LA’s elections to coincide with higher-profile state or national races.

The total voter participation won't be known until large numbers of mail-in and provisional ballots are counted. According to a Times analysis, that could drive final turnout for the election close to 20%, potentially changing the outcome of some City Council races.

While striking, it is not an unprecedented low turnout for the first round in a Los Angeles municipal election. Four years ago, 17.9% of the city's 1.6 million registered voters cast ballots. Mayor Tom Bradley's last reelection bid, in 1989, drew only 23% of eligible voters. (Read more.) 

-cw

CityWatch

3-11-13