Peter Gay: If you don’t vote … | Columns | thesunchronicle.com – The Sun Chronicle
#inform-video-player-1 .inform-embed { margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 20px; }
#inform-video-player-2 .inform-embed { margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 20px; }
Mine was one of the 3,144 votes cast in Attleboro’s preliminary election to pare the field of mayoral candidates from three to two.
I actually came within 90 minutes of missing Tuesday’s election.
“NBC Nightly News” was about to begin when I realized what day it was (I can never remember which Tuesday in September the preliminary is held). I drove to the Murray Unitarian Universalist Church, cast my vote and was back in my recliner in time for Lester Holt’s final segment.
As is usually the case, my vote didn’t matter. Incumbent Paul Heroux captured all 12 precincts by a wide margin, totaling 2,072 votes. The two-term mayor will now meet Todd McGhee, 811 votes, in the Nov. 6 election. Jim Poore was a distant third with only 261 votes.
The number of people who went to the polls on Tuesday represented only 10% of the city’s registered voters. That number is even lower when you include the number of Attleboro residents 18 years and older who have never bothered to register.
Attleboro’s numbers, a preliminary election, were actually good compared to the general elections in four area towns.
Foxboro had a turnout of less than 7.5% in the spring, North Attleboro saw only 7.4% of registered voters cast ballots, Mansfield was even lower with 6.5% and Norfolk a miniscule 3.6%.
Norton and Plainville both topped Attleboro’s turnout on Tuesday, due in large part because the results directly impacted residents’ wallets. Norton passed a $41 million debt exclusion and Plainville rejected a $1.95 million override request.
Three other towns topped the city’s. Rehoboth had a turnout of 18%, Seekonk had 10.9% and Wrentham 10.7%.
Those numbers all pale in comparison to November’s presidential election when it was assured Joe Biden would easily win the state over Donald Trump and our votes had no impact on the outcome.
Local elections determine the men and women who set our property tax rates. These officials make decisions on public safety, the quality of our children’s education, trash collection, roads and more.
It is why I will make it a point to ask someone if they voted the next time they’re critical of their municipal government on social media. The odds are high that they did not.
I believe that someone who isn’t willing to spend an hour or less a year (or every two years in Attleboro) to vote, loses the right to be critical of those elected in those races.
My bet is that the donor will be someone who voted in April.
#inform-video-player-3 .inform-embed { margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 20px; }