The county's election chief has a theory on why turnout in the March 3 elections was lower than expected.
"I blame all these people holding signs that wouldn't let people in the parking lot," Garland County Election Commission Chairman Gene Haley said after certifying results Friday from the preferential primaries, nonpartisan general election, annual school elections and House District 22 special election.
"That's what I think," he said. "It's county property. I could throw them off. I don't want to step on anybody's rights to talk to voters before they cross that line, but I can't have them impeding traffic."
Haley said aggressive electioneering in front of the Election Commission Building on Ouachita Avenue and in the parking lot made it difficult for voters to access the polls. Election headquarters is typically the county's busiest polling place. Its 4,140 voter check-ins during 12 days of early voting were the most among four early voting sites. Its 849 check-ins on election day topped all 25 vote centers.
Haley said 35% turnout is typical for primary and nonpartisan elections, but this year participation by the county's more than 60,000 registered voters dropped to 31.5%. Results certified Friday showed 19,677 ballots were cast. More than 21,000 were cast in March 2016, the previous election with presidential primaries.
Haley said the most aggressive electioneering was in the nonpartisan election, which featured five contested judicial races. He compared it to 2014, the previous election where all of the county's circuit judges stood for election.
"In 2014, we basically had to ask everybody to leave the parking lot because they were blocking traffic," he said.
Haley said some voters parked off site this year to avoid the throng in front of and in the parking lot at election headquarters.
"I had a lot of complaints about it because there was no place to park," he said. "A good friend of mine, her husband brought her and he parked at the courthouse. She walked all the way from the courthouse over here because he didn't want to fight the mess."
Haley said he's sent a letter to the county judge and mayor about keeping the entrance to the Election Commission Building free from campaign workers and volunteers. They are allowed by law to campaign up to 100 feet from polling sites, a line of demarcation denoted by a painted line in the parking lot of election headquarters.
Haley said most people honor the line, but some don't know any better.
"I'm not going to say who it was, but somebody wearing a T-shirt for one of the judicial candidates pulled up, and the only parking spot was right up front," Haley said. "He pulled up and parked there and was talking on his phone with the T-shirt on, just laying on the back of his truck. He was right in front of the door. I told him he needed to move."
Haley noted that disrupting an election is a Class A misdemeanor.
"I'm concerned about not only somebody getting hurt but impeding voters," he said.
Runoff
Early voting for the March 31 runoff for Position 4 on the Lakeside School Board begins March 24. Early voting will be at the Election Commission Building, 649A Ouachita Ave., March 24-27 and March 30 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Election Commission Building and Creekside Community Church, 1010 Shady Grove Road, are the election day voting locations. Polls will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Incumbent and retired Lakeside teacher Carla Mouton won a 40.50% plurality in the four-way race. Mortgage banker Brian French's 25.24% share of the 4,195 vote cast qualified him for the runoff against Mouton.
Provisional ballots
Twenty-eight of 41 provisional ballots cast were included in the final vote tally. Haley said 12 weren't counted because the voter wasn't on the county clerk's voting rolls, and one was disallowed because the voter didn't show photo identification, sign a sworn statement attesting to their identity or provide ID after casting their ballot.
Four overseas ballots were added to the total, Haley said. Two were Democratic ballots, one Republican and one nonpartisan. Overseas ballots have to be received by the county clerk's office within 10 days of an election to be counted.
District 12 special election
Richard McGrew, representative-elect for House District 22, told the Garland County Quorum Court earlier this week that he'll be sworn in Tuesday. The Piney Republican defeated Hot Springs Village Libertarian Judy Bowers in the March 3 special election to fill the seat through the remainder of the year, winning 4,751-2,198.
McGrew resigned his District 12 justice of the peace seat on the quorum court Monday night.
"It's been a pleasure to serve the people of District 12, and it's been a pleasure serving with all of you," he told his fellow JPs.
McGrew won an almost 60% majority in the three-way Republican primary for the 2021-22 term for District 22, setting up a rematch with Bowers in the November general election. The district comprises east Garland and north Saline counties.
Garland County Judge Darryl Mahoney said he's putting together a list of potential replacements for the governor to appoint to the quorum court's vacant District 12 seat. The replacement will serve through the end of the year. JP-elect Jeremy Brown will fill the seat for the 2021-22 term.
The county's certified election results were as follows:
Democratic primary
U.S. president
Joseph R. Biden 2,890
Bernie Sanders 1,653
Michael R. Bloomberg 1,550
Elizabeth Warren 677
Pete Buttigieg 391
Amy Klobuchar 389
Tom Steyer 87
Tulsi Gabbard 48
Marianne Williamson 34
Andrew Yang 30
Cory Booker 20
Kamala Harris 19
John K. Delaney 19
Joe Sestak 10
Mosie Boyd 7
Steve Bullock 7
Michael Bennett 6
Julian Castro 6
Republican primary
U.S. president
Donald J. Trump 10,676
Bill Weld 298
Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente 94
District 13 Senate
Sen. Alan Clark 2,382
Jeff Crow 742
District 21 House
Jim Reynolds 175
Rep. Marcus Richmond 93
District 22 House
JP Richard McGrew 1,965
Jack Wells 999
Richard Alvin Midkiff 351
District 26 House
Lorna Nobles 390
Rick McClure 373
Hot Springs Township Constable
Constable Scott Hecke 1,991
Jim Kerr 1,388
District 22 House special election
JP Richard McGrew 3,470
Judy Bowers 1,641
Nonpartisan general election
Supreme Court associate justice position 4
Barbara Womack Webb 11,037
Judge Morgan "Chip" Welch 7,419
Court of Appeals District 4, Position 2
Prosecuting Attorney Stephanie Potter Barrett 11,007
Emily White 7,369
Division 1 circuit judge
Judge Ralph Ohm 13,698
Shane Ethridge 5,015
Division 2 circuit judge
Cecilia Dyer 6,801
Judge Wade Naramore 6,409
Brian Johnson 5,805
Division 2 district judge
Meredith Switzer 13,343
Mark Steven Fraiser 5,421
Annual school elections
Position 4 Lakeside School Board
Carla Mouton 1,699
Brian French 1,059
Cory Cangelosi 792
Jonathan Burfeind 645
Local on 03/15/2020