Turnout expected to be low for primary

What if they held an election and nobody came?

That's what Cape Girardeau County Clerk Kara Clark Summers is wondering 10 days before Missouri's presidential primary election.

"I was originally thinking the turnout might be as high as 40%," Summers said. However, she believes the 16 presidential primaries and caucuses taking place this week on "Super Tuesday" will overshadow Missouri's presidential primary.

"There just hasn't been a lot of talk about the March 10 election," Summers said.

Missouri is one of six states that will hold a primary vote that day. The other states are Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, North Dakota and Washington.

Missouri's primary will allow voters to indicate their presidential preference on one of five party ballots -- Democratic, Republican, Libertarian, Green or Constitution. The names of 22 candidates appear on the Democratic ballot, five on the Republican ballot, three on the Constitution Party's ballot, two on the Green Party's ticket and one on the Libertarian ballot.

There are no other issues or elections on the ballot and voters in may choose any party ballot regardless of their own party affiliation.

"It's an odd election because it only happens every four years," Summers said, which she believes is another reason many voters don't think about it.

Last week county election officials tested the voting equipment that will be used at approximately 30 polling places throughout the county. "Also this year we've added the clerk's offices in Cape and Jackson as central poling places," Summers said.

Regardless of how many county residents vote on March 10, it will still require between 200 and 250 election workers to staff the county's polling places. They'll be responsible for making sure all voting rules are followed, including the requirement that no one wears candidate apparel or anything related to a candidate within 25 feet of a polling place.

More information is available by calling the clerk's office, (573) 243-3547, or online at capecountyelections.com.

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