South Florida’s Municipal vs. General Election turnout
Bottom Line: On Tuesday Fort Lauderdale became the most recent municipality to scrap municipal election cycles and restructure local government to reflect Presidential election cycles. Based on the sub 10% turnout in Broward and 13% in Palm Beach County, I’m wondering if this isn’t something more local governments shouldn’t consider.
Pros:
- Saves money(municipal elections cost up to $1 million to hold)
- Increased turnout/participation(municipal turnout averages 12%-18% compared to 65% for Presidential elections)
Cons:
- Municipal candidates overshadowed by larger races
- Longer ballots/wait times
Tossup:
- 4-year terms when most municipal officials hold shorter terms
Putting it all together it’s a slam dunk that the cost savings is a net positive. I also see the value in a majority of adults weighing in on their local their local government as well. It’s kind of crazy that only about 10% of voters turned out to make decisions that impacted the property taxes of 100% of the residents for example. But then again, that is the fault of those who choose not to have a say so that’s not the strongest argument in my book. Looking at the cons...
I like participation but I also like informed voters. How many voters won’t/don’t educate themselves about the local candidates but vote anyway? At least you know those who turn out in municipal elections are considered and purposeful. And yes, the longer ballot and wait times. As if Presidential cycles ballots weren’t already long enough, especially in Florida where it’s now becoming a new sport to see how quickly you can collect enough signatures to get a proposed amendment question on the ballot, do we really want all local issues on it as well?
How much longer will those early voting and Election Day lines be? There’s some food for thought. I report, you decide. I think it’s worth a conversation at a minimum.