Maryland Community Newspapers Online
Voter turnout at the 51 polling places for the special primary to fill the vacancy in District 4 on the Montgomery County Council was low this morning, but being over-prepared and the slow pace kept the election problem free during the first few hours of voting, county elections officials said.
The election is needed to fill the seat following the death of Don Praisner (D), who died Jan. 30. He had won the seat in a special election last year after his wife, longtime Councilwoman Marilyn J. Praisner (D), died that February.
"At this point it seems pretty slow," said Marjorie Roher, a spokeswoman for the Montgomery County Board of Elections.
She said as of 10:30 there had been no reported problems or issues, but a late-day surge of voters could be possible.
"We encouraged people on the sample ballot we sent out not to go first thing in the morning to avoid school traffic," she said. "So we may see a surge around lunch time or after work."
By 9:30 a.m., 19 voters had made their choice at Col. Magruder High School in Derwood.
Marc Stec of Rockville said he voted for Republican Robin Ficker in order to shake things up on the council.
"[The council members] are too complacent in this economic crisis," he said. "I don't always agree with Ficker, but on the financial and economic issues I do."
Glynis Kazanjian of Rockville also voted for a Republican — political newcomer Louis August of Silver Spring, who she said fits in well with Montgomery County.
She said the revitalization of the high schools in District 4 and growing gang activity are among the issues that brought her to the polls.
"I thing a lot of Republicans feel like District 4 is the stepchild of Montgomery County," she said. "It's been ignored and the tax dollars are not spread out evenly."
Hamid Dadpay of Rockville said he turned out to vote because he felt it was his civic duty.
"It's a responsibility we have to take part in elections," he said.
Dadpay voted for Democrat Benjamin F. Kramer, who holds a seat as a member of the Maryland House of Representatives from District 19, because of Kramer's stance on the county executive's proposed ambulance fee.
"I don't like the ambulance fee, and Kramer is against it."
Kramer and fellow Democratic candidates Nancy Navarro (Dist. 5) of Silver Spring, attorney Robert Goldman of Burtonsville and former Montgomery County Civic Federation president Cary Lamari of Norbeck greeted a slow stream of voters in front of Clubhouse 1 in Leisure World this morning.
They were joined by August, an entrepreneur and nonprofit organization executive.
The group said they hoped voter turnout would pick up by the afternoon.
"I think the weather will be the deciding factor as far as how many people come out to vote," Lamari said.
Navarro said she had also noticed it had been quiet.
"But I think it'll pick up here as the sky clears up," Navarro said. "I'm sure Leisure World will turn out to vote — they're very good about that."
Louise Armentrout, chief Democratic election judge for Clubhouse 1, said the 12 voting machines were working without any problems.
She said the turnout was slow and 30 voters cast ballots in the first hour. Compared to other major elections, that represented a significantly smaller number of voters and it was "maybe a little slower" than the turnout at the special primary election last year, she said.
Barbara Marcus, chief election judge for the Democratic Party at Clubhouse 2, said out of 2,672 registered Republicans and Democrats in Leisure World's second precinct, 125 had cast their votes by 10 a.m.
"I'd be happy if we got 500 voters today," she said.
Robert Levan, 78, said he researched the 10 candidates and felt Goldman would be the best addition to the County Council.
"I listened to all of the candidates and he seemed the most qualified for the job," he said.
Ron Thurber, chief judge at Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, said turnout seemed slow. As of 8:50 this morning, only 22 people had cast ballots.
Because the poll was set up in a wrestling room in the basement of the school, he questioned whether or not people could find it. All equipment was working flawlessly, he said.
Ashton resident Spiro Papagjika said that since Montgomery County is overwhelmingly Democratic, the primary election is really like a general election. He voted for Thomas Hardman of Aspen Hill.
"I voted for him because of his stands on immigration," he said. "The rest of the candidates are all the same and I tend to be more conservative."
Edward Mastal, chief judge at Sherwood Elementary School in Sandy Spring said turnout was slow there, as well. At 9:40 am, only 14 people had voted.
"Everything is working fine, we just need more people to come out," he said.
The story was the same at Rosa Parks Middle School in Olney. At 10 a.m., only 18 votes had been cast.
"We didn't know what to expect, but the turnout has been very low," chief judge Mukesh Malik said. "They say to expect 10 percent, but I don't know if we will get that."
At Wheaton High School, two election volunteers sat shivering in the early morning, hoping the sun would come out and bring with it more voters.
About 10 voters showed up in the first two hours of voting, volunteer Ana Maria Delgado said.
"When I went knocking on doors, people weren't aware there was an election," Delgado said about her get-out-the-vote effort about a month ago.
But the polling place at Kemp Mill Elementary School in Glenmont had a steady stream of voters in the morning. About 41 of roughly 1,300 voters in the precinct had showed up to vote in the first few hours, said Bill Waller, the chief election judge. Waller and other election volunteers said that pace is on par with last year's special election primary, which had comparatively low voter turnout.
Kemp Mill resident Douglas Bates said on his way out of the school that he had a difficult time deciding who to vote for, but eventually put his support behind Goldman because the Burtonsville native is a newcomer and "the least tainted" of all the candidates.
Passing by Bates on her way in was Esther Liberman, who hinted at her vote for Ficker because the middle class needs protection from the "frenzy of raising taxes," she said.
Polling places along Old Columbia Pike in Burtonsville had a similar theme: more election officials than voters.
About 30 votes were cast at Benjamin Banneker Middle School by 10 a.m. At the Marilyn J. Praisner Community Recreation Center, fewer than 30 votes were tallied on seven voting machines.
Karen Walker, precinct judge at the recreation center and an elections official for 21 years, said she would be "tickled" if they broke 200 votes for the day, but said those figures looked unlikely since early totals were low.
Dressed in Washington Capitals attire at the recreation center polling site, Jim Kreuzburg, 61, said he supports Navarro. Kreuzburg said the economy was his biggest issue, saying it was on his mind as he headed to polls.
At Banneker, Mendel and Lila Abrams voted for Kramer. Some of the Abrams' issues include the county budget, smart growth and the Intercounty Connector.
"We think about it's about time that the ICC gets done," said Lila Abrams, 71.
Despite the seemingly low voter turnout, Mendel Abrams, 74, said that does not diminish the meaning of voting, no matter what size the election.
"That's what democracy is all about," he said.
The winners of the Democratic and Republican primary races today will move on to the general election on May 19. Green Party candidate George Gluck of Rockville ran unopposed and will advance directly to the general election.
Staff Writers Nathan Carrick, Melissa J. Brachfeld, Robert Dongu, Terri Hogan and Amber Parcher contributed to this report.
