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"Pathetic" and "shameful" were words heard on city streets Tuesday night. None of them were directed at any of the of the 26 candidates on the city's primary election ballot, but rather at the number of voters who turned out to polling places. The election itself occurred without many upsets as most of the leading candidates found themselves on the path to the city's Nov. 3 general election. One incumbent alderman failed to advance, and the well-known name of one candidate was once again left out of the running. But for some observers, the limited number of votes cast represented the biggest failure of the election. "I think the biggest story was the low voter turnout," said George Wenschhof, a local Democratic activist and commentator. The 16.8 percent turnout was the lowest among the past three city primary elections. Only 4,209 of the city's 29,943 registered Republicans and Democrats cast ballots. The number fell below the 2005 primary, where 25 percent of voters cast ballots and came just under the 17 percent of city voters who turned out in the 2001 primary election. Wenschhof said it was another reason the city should seriously consider moving its election cycle to coincide with higher-profile presidential elections. Jennifer Dougherty, a former Frederick mayor who on Tuesday failed for the second time to move past a primary election to regain the city's top office, stopped short of connecting the low turnout to her defeat on Tuesday. But the low numbers were troubling, she said. "The city's too big for that and it's too important for that," she said. "I really hope people start taking responsibility at the polls for our city. It's important." Dougherty said she's moving past politics after she was defeated Tuesday by Jason Judd, an economist and executive at the Service Employees International Union. Dougherty said she would continue her career as a real estate agent and is exploring a vending management business opportunity. This is Judd's first run for public office. "I love it, but clearly elected office is not the spot for me right now," Dougherty said. The only incumbent to lose was Alderman David "Kip" Koontz, who failed to make it to the general election after coming in seventh out of nine Democrats. The top five vote-getters of each party will move on to the aldermanic general election Nov. 3. "I have enjoyed and been honored to serve the citizens of the City of Frederick ," Koontz said. He declined to comment further on the outcome of the election. Wenschhof said Koontz led a much lower-energy campaign this year, which could have contributed to his poor showing at the polls. "I felt that the zeal that he had when he won four years ago was not exhibited this time during the campaign," he said. W.T. Mills, a close follower and commentator of local Republican politics, said there were no surprises Tuesday. He said GOP mayoral victor Randy McClement, owner of a downtown delicatessen, will face a challenge against the well-organized campaign of Judd and the political balance of the city. "The demographics of the voting registration indicate there's going to be a tremendous uphill battle," Mills said. The city has 9,825 registered Republicans, compared with 15,118 registered Democrats. Mills said he was also displeased by the turnout. More than 35 percent of the 2,563 voters in Precinct 5, an old area of tree-lined neighborhoods west of North Market Street that includes the College Park neighborhood and Hood College, showed up at the William R. Talley Recreation Center to cast ballots. "Those folks, they're the anchors of the community," Mills said about the moderate turnout in that precinct. "These people have been here and are the big influences in the city." The Hillcrest neighborhood, Precinct 4, had the lowest turnout of the 12 precincts in the city. About 9.6 percent of the area's 3,099 voters decided to vote Tuesday. Wenschhof said the shifting demographic of that west end neighborhood may have caused a shortage of voters at the polls. "Identifying into the community might be a little more difficult," he said. "You have a bit more of a transient population there." Election officials will certify the final vote count today, adding more than 200 absentee ballots to the totals.
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