Another primary season has come and gone, and we’re left sitting here sifting through the returns trying to figure out what it all means.
Well … truth be told, none of us has the means nor the desire to play political guru, so we figured we’d offer you some basic observations we’re reflecting on after Tuesday’s primary results:
– It was a good night to be in an incumbent judicial position.
Both District Judge Russell Bush and Probate Judge Bill English were returned to their positions by the voters with vote margins in the 70 percent range.
Perhaps the “experience” argument played particularly well with voters, and both the Opelikans did well within the ballot boxes of their town.
Apparently, Lee County voters wanted to stand by their judges.
– Sheila Eckman’s county commission seat win is a gamechanger.
Well … maybe. We’ll see.
We know Eckman isn’t afraid to speak her mind or vote her conscience in her role as an Auburn city councilwoman, and we would be surprised if she did not bring those same strong beliefs with her to her new role as county commissioner.
We know this for sure: county commission meetings might become a whole lot more interesting come January.
– Jon Chase will be back in politics.
While the voters of Lee County might not have thought him to be the right fit for the probate judge position this year, we commend challenger Jon Chase for running one heck of a campaign to get the job.
He did an admirable job getting his name out there and introducing himself to the public, and his ideas for promoting industrial development and recruitment deserve mention and praise.
We hope Chase is not dissuaded by this loss, and we hope he will continue to play an active role in the county’s political process, in whatever fashion he chooses.
– Voter turnout reached expectations.
While we privately believed we might see some increased voter turnout due to the local judicial races, it seems around 30 percent of Lee County’s voters actually made it to the polls Tuesday, on par with expectations set by elections officials.
Maybe the dark clouds kept some older folks at home, but we were somewhat disappointed by the turnout.
A vigorous and healthy democracy requires that all citizens take advantage of their rights and vote, but we don’t seem to espouse that value here.
That’s a shame.
