Low Voter Turnout Expected

    The Central City Council runoff election between Jason Ellis and Ralph Washington is the sole item on the ballot May 3rd and history says low voter turnout is almost a guarantee.
    The April 5th primary, with fifteen candidates and the BREC tax on the ballot, garnered only a 38% voter turnout.  Observers of politics and elections in Central are predicting a turnout that may not exceed 15%, a number they say would favor incumbent Ralph Washington over the newcomer Jason Ellis.
    Ellis, in addition to being a new name in politics, is in his early 30’s, an age group that traditionally does not vote in large numbers.  However, Ellis has commented that being a combat veteran and his family having been in Central for many generations gives him strong ties to all of Central’s age groups.
    Washington enjoys the name recognition of being a three-term incumbent.  The strength of the incumbent edge became evident when Washington made the runoff despite doing almost no campaigning due to health problems.  Washington has assured voters that his health is improving.
    Most of the candidates in this year’s elections came out in favor of Council elections by District. District elections minimize the advantage of the incumbent and make running for a Council seat a much more affordable process.  District elections allow candidates to seek the votes of the 1,600 likely voters in their District rather than the 8,000 city-wide who will go to the polls.