Elections 2014: Low Turnout Expected for July 22 Runoffs

Political pundits expect turnout to be low next week for runoff elections across the state, particularly the race for state schools superintendent.

One of the most high-profile races on the ballot next week will decide the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, which pits Jack Kingston against David Perdue.

There are just over 5 million registered voters in Georgia. But poll watchers tell WABE they expect only the most committed of Georgia’s 5 million registered voters to take part in next week’s runoffs.

Some local officials predict voter turnout will be around 10 percent for next Tuesday’s runoff. The Republican Senate matchup may draw some out to the polls. But Emory political science professor Andra Gillespie says the state superintendent race won’t draw voters.

Gillespie says a compelling educational issue or heavy campaigning by the four candidates could boost interest. The contenders are: Democrats Alisha T. Morgan and Valarie Wilson, and Republicans Mike Buck and Richard L. ("Billy") Woods.

One reason for the low interest in state superintendent, Gillespie says, could be that voters don’t really know what the job involves.

“You know what the big offices are and what they do, but you don’t think about a lot of the smaller offices,” Gillespie says. “So, when you think about state school superintendents or when you think about insurance commissioners and labor commissioners, those are typically not the offices that we tend to talk a lot about in Civics class.”

Some areas have early voting open now. The last day to vote in the state’s runoff is Tuesday, July 22. You can go to 'My Voter Page' at http://mvp.sos.ga.gov/ to get your questions answered about the election.