July 26, 2024
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Putnam County reports 24.8% voter turnout, while Bureau sees 15.9%

County Clerk say governor’s race brought out those who cast ballots

By Kim Shute
John Eggers votes at the Bureau County Metro Center during the Primary Election on Tuesday, June 28, 2022 in Princeton.

John Eggers votes at the Bureau County Metro Center during the Primary Election on Tuesday, June 28, 2022 in Princeton. (Scott Anderson)

The Putnam County and Bureau County clerks reported low turnouts for the primary election June 28, citing the governor’s race for bringing out those who did choose to cast ballots.

Bureau County Clerk Matt Eggers reported a 15.9 % turnout at the polls and said he predicted the number to be in the 15% to 18% range.

“I’d say the Republican race for governor is what brought a lot of people out, “Eggers said. ”That seems to be the big one.”

In addition to the June 28 turnout, Eggers said there are about 100 outstanding absentee ballots as of the close of the polls.

In comparison, Eggers said the March 2018 primary in which Gov. JB Pritzker and Republican Bruce Rauner won their respective parties’ races saw a turnout twice that of this year’s primary.

“There weren’t any snags. Everything went smoothly,” Eggers said of the June 28 primary. “We had a downturn, but I’m looking forward to November for a good turnout.”

Putnam County Clerk Tina Dolder said the turnout came in a bit higher than expected.

“I anticipated a turnout of around 20%, however, tonight’s unofficial result came in at 24.81%,” Dolder said.

Dolder said the state and county had to go through multiple changes while preparing for this primary election.

“This general primary we all experienced a lot of changes from the date being pushed into June when it is typically in March, all of the redistricting, election laws changing, many new election judges and to top if off this was my first election as county clerk,” Dolder said.

For her first election, Dolder said it was great to help serve the people of Putnam County.

“Although at times it has been very stressful, it has also been extremely rewarding to serve as the election authority for Putnam County,” Dolder said.

On June 28, there were 1,010 ballots cast in the primary in Putnam County. There are 4,071 registered voters in Putnam County.

Dolder reminded the public that the results remain unofficial as the county has three vote-by-mail ballots that have not been returned.

As with all county elections, results for both Bureau and Putnam counties will remain unofficial until the counties are able to officially canvass the results.