Sunday blog: The 2021 election in Sumner County was boring, but still fascinating
Commentary by Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — My favorite column of the year- the post-election analysis Sumner County style…
Here are some takeaways:
Boooring….
There were no intense battles or divisive issues driving people to the election booth this year.
And boy did you stay home because of it. Only 16.3 percent of registered voters cast a vote in the local municipal/school board election this year. Sumner County has a population of 22,836 people according to the latest census. With 2,397 registered voters casting votes Tuesday, that equates to 9.52 percent of the population who actually voted.
Pathetic.
In 2019, voter turnout was much higher at 21.59 percent. That was fueled partially by the hot issue of the time: the computer-based Summit curriculum at Wellington USD 353. Two longtime board members lost their seats because of it and a third probably would have, had she decided to run.
This year there was no such issue.
Some would argue that school COVID-19 mask-mandates were the big issue for people going to the polls. I don’t think so. Mask mandates – or getting rid of them – was important to a select noisy group of parents and was partially the reason a couple of candidates ran.
But overall I don’t think people really cared about the COVID issues when going to the polls. There is a sense of fatigue, c’est la vie, and if you are like me, quite bored with the whole topic.
Single issues rarely define a candidate over a four-year period. That Summit issue we were all worked up about two years ago, seems like ancient history today.
Community service is hard work. There is little reward, nothing financially to gain, and usually opens you up to public ridicule. Those who get voted off the city council or school board by losing an election or retiring, rarely miss being on it.
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Sumner Newscow political forums
Sumner Newscow has been featuring local political forums since we started this website 11 years ago. We do it for one reason: it is a community service. It allows you the reader a chance to know the candidates and what they stand for. It is that simple.
So it perplexes me why there were a couple of candidates who decided not to participate. What does a candidate have to lose?
I’m not sure the percentage of voters in Wellington who actually read the forums, let alone decide who to vote for based on its content. For me, as a voter, my mind is usually made up the day I see who is running for what. After all, we kind of know one another. New York City we are not.
In local elections, where there is neither an R or D besides a name, we truly vote for the person. Granted sometimes it is for frivolous matters like:
“I’m not voting for her because of that awful pink dress she wore on New Year’s Eve gala.”
“I’m not voting for him because he dropped that pass against Ark City in 1978 and cost us the game.”
Still, these are the one elections we truly vote for the person – which is how it should be.
The Newscow forums also serve as a window into a candidates’ abilities. I’ve heard this several times, “he/she sounded smart on the Cow, so I might vote for him/her.” And if you are involved in a tight race a good answer about global warming, fiscal responsibility, or why that candidate wore that awful pink dress at the New Year’s Eve gala may tip the election your way.
If you decide not to answer a questionnaire because you are trying to hurt me or Sumner Newscow, then you’ve made a stupid decision. First of all, I don’t care. Second of all, you not filling out the questionnaire means less work for me.
In other words, you can choose to hate my guts, be revolted that Sumner Newscow even exists, determine that to be even associated with The Cow is an insult to your intelligence, dignity, and family.
But fill out the questionnaire anyway. It’s free publicity, it can only improve your public image, and, really, is anyone going to say, “I’m voting for Joe Schmo because he didn’t fill out the Sumner Newscow political forum?”
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Write-in campaigns.
I thought Brad Ledbetter, who ran a write-in campaign for the District 3 position of the Wellington School Board, did a wonderful job on his candidacy.
Aside from the misstep of not filling out the Sumner Newscow political forum questionnaire, his campaign was well organized and attention-getting.
The problem for him was, his name was not on the ballot.
Election historian J.P. Buellesfeld said according to his notes, there have been 22 times in his life someone has had a write-in campaign in Wellington, and all but one ended in failure.
It is a lot easier to convince voters to check off a box than it is to get them to remember to write your name in a specific blank space on the ballot – let alone get your name spelled correctly.
And that leads me to my final point…
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Move elections back to April!
Allow me to continue my bi-annual rant about how stupid the move was for the 2016 Kansas Legislature to move these local elections from April to November and try to make them like state and national elections.
It used to be local candidates would file in late January and vote in early April. There may have been a primary in between in March if there were a lot of candidates.
Today, a candidate files in June and if there is no primary won’t have its election until November – five months later. That’s an eternity!
Twice this year, it has proved to be the detriment to politicians and its voters in Wellington. One city candidate who registered in June, left the community for other job opportunities. Ledbetter said he didn’t get registered in time, because he wasn’t thinking about running for school board in June.
One of the reasons moving the elections to November was to increase voter participation. But that hasn’t happen.
According to the Sumner County clerk office, the voter turnover figures are as follows:
November 2021 – 16.63%
November 2019 – 21.59%
November 2017 – 18.21%
April 2015 – 24.16%
Not once has the November voting turnout come close to the April election.
Put the elections back in April!
