Serving the Flathead Valley & Montana since 2006. A reality based independent journal of observation & analysis. © James Conner.
Absentee voting for Montana’s 3 June primary begins tomorrow, affording citizens the opportunity to cast early votes instead of enjoying another month of campaigning before making up their minds. In the 2012 general election, 54.4 percent of the votes cast in Flathead County were cast by absentee ballot. As always, I’ll cast my vote in person at my local polling on election day.
Since 1998, the turnout of Montana’s voting eligible population in midterm primary elections has ranged from 24.7 to 29.8 percent (see the graph below). The high point was in 2006, when there was a spirited Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate, and a throw the bums out mood among national voters (who returned control of Congress to the Democrats). That level of excitement doesn’t exist this year for either party, so VEP turnout probably will be in the 25–30 percent range. I hope it’s higher, but I’m not counting on it.
