Overall, Tuesday’s consolidated election went smoothly, but Crawford County Clerk Fayrene Wright wishes more people had participated in the balloting.
Countywide turnout was 18.72 percent. Only 2,376 of the county’s 12,692 registered voters cast ballots.
It was a precipitous drop from the November general election. “It would have been awesome if we had seen that 75 percent again,” Wright said.
The highest turnouts, 39.59 and 33.33 percent, were reported in Martin and Montgomery townships, respectively. Both had contested races on the ballot. The lowest was in Oblong 1, where only 9.39 percent of registered voters participated.
Otherwise, Wright was pleased with how the election went. The first results — from Robinson 8 — were in to her office before 7:30 p.m. The last precinct to arrive was Licking at 8:20 p.m. The final tally was somewhat delayed, however, because essential equipment was left behind at the polling place for Hutsonville 2. A volunteer retrieved it and the count was completed before 9 p.m.
Wright’s office, in the county annex building, was open Tuesday night only to election officials.  Wright was concerned that “we’re still just borderline enough” that allowing a larger crowd inside could permit the spread of the coronavirus. She is hopeful she can fully reopen for the primary election next March.
Results will not be made official until after the vote has been canvassed. This is tentatively scheduled for April 20.
By law, there is a 14-day waiting period to allow any mail-in votes still out there to arrive. To count, they must be postmarked by the date of the election.