About 285 SPLOST voters showed up but never cast ballot

Thursday, September 29, 2005 3:05 AM EDT
By Kimberly Starks

Marietta Daily Journal Staff Writer

MARIETTA - About 285 voters showed up at the polls on Sept. 20 for Cobb's Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax referendum but never cast a vote.

The number of these "nonvotes," where a registered voter received a ballot but left without voting either yes or no, was more than twice SPLOST's 114-vote victory.

While election officials and political observers say the nonvoters likely would not have swayed the election in the other direction, some say they indicate continued problem's with Georgia's electronic voting system.

"Why are we losing these people?" said Matt Towery, a syndicated columnist and chairman of Vinings-based political polling firm Insider Advantage. "It raises questions about electronic voting not just in Cobb but in Georgia."

That said, Towery said he does not believe the nonvotes in Cobb's SPLOST referendum could have swayed the outcome of the vote.

Dr. Carol Pierannunzi, director of the A.L. Burruss Institute of Public Service at Kennesaw State University, said there are a number of reasons voters show up to the polls but never cast a vote.

"There are people who are in the habit of voting," she said. "Civic duty and whatever else compels them to go to the polls, but they don't know enough about the matter to vote."

Other voters may not know how to operate the new electronic voting system that was implemented in Georgia in 2002 and are too embarrassed to ask for help, Towery said.

"It's inconceivable that someone would be motivated to show up and go to the electronic voting booth and not vote," he said.

Similar nonvotes were registered during a runoff election between Warren Auld and Melvin Everson in Gwinnett County on Tuesday.

Cobb election officials described the number of nonvotes in the SPLOST referendum - less than 300 out of almost 40,000 ballots cast - as "irrelevant."

"We wouldn't know if it's intentional," said Beth Kish, Cobb County's elections and registration manager.

Ms. Kish said nonvotes aren't a matter the board has researched in past county elections.

"It's a secret ballot, and people can do whatever they want," she said.

During primaries, runoffs and general elections the off rate, or voting items further down on an election ballot, increases because people may not be aware of additional ballot items, Dr. Pierannunzi said. However, new voting machines warn voters if they haven't voted.

The SPLOST referendum was the only election item on the Sept. 20 ballot. The 1-cent on the dollar sales tax is expected to generate $826 million over six years.

Despite the nonvotes, observers would be remiss to suggest the SPLOST election was afoul, Towery said.

"There's no chicanery here," he said.