Have you voted? Spokane County on track for average voter turnout

Kelsie Morgan by Kelsie Morgan

Copyright 2019 KXLY.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without prior permission. A voter fills out their ballot.

Election day is one week away. Your ballot for the 2019 general election needs to be returned by Tuesday, November 5th.

With one week left to go, nearly 14 percent of registered voters in Spokane County — or 45,839 people — had already turned theirs in.

Spokane County Auditor Vicki Dalton said that’s about normal for an odd year election.

Odd years are when municipal positions and initiatives are put on the ballot. In the last odd year election (2017), Spokane county voter turnout was 34%. In 2015, it was 42%. Dalton believes the county is on track for at least 35% voter turnout in 2019.

Those voters will be shaping the county’s future, deciding positions like Spokane mayor and council president, various school board seats and city council positions in Spokane Valley, Airway Heights, Cheney and Deer Park among others.

[Have questions about what you’re voting on? Check our Voter’s Guide here.]

Though a relatively small percentage of the population tends to weigh in on these positions, average voter turnout skyrockets in midterm and presidential elections. In 2016, 76.54% of Spokane county voters cast a ballot. In the 2018 midterm, 72.27% voted.

To make your voice heard in the current election, get your ballot filled out and put back in the mail by November 5. Ballots do not need a stamp in Washington state.

Or, you can find one of many ballot drop boxes around the county. Ballots can be dropped in those until 8:00 p.m. on election night.

COPYRIGHT 2020 BY KXLY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.