Beverly Voters Turned Out At 78 Percent

BEVERLY, MA – Unofficial results show that 78.61 percent of city voters cast ballots in this election: 22,233 ballots were counted out of Beverly's 28,282 registered voters.

While that percentage seems high – the U.S. Elections Project estimated that 55.6 of eligible (not necessarily registered, but eligible) voters cast a ballot in 2016 – Beverly Town Clerk Wes Slate said that in recent presidential elections, the city's turnout has hung between 82 and 84 percent.

Of the ballots cast this cycle in Beverly, 293 bubbles next the the presidential candidates were left blank, and 550 people wrote in candidates. That's only 1.32 and 2.47 percent, respectively, but the voters who couldn't bring themselves to pick a president were not alone.

Gov. Charlie Baker told reporters on Tuesday that he did not vote for president.

Twenty percent of Beverly voters, or 4,470 left Seth Moulton's uncontested race blank, and 26.76 percent of voters didn't fill out Senator Joan Lovely's uncontested race.

Ward 6-2, which voted at the Centerville School, led turnout with 83.88 percent.

Essex County Sheriff-Elect Kevin Coppinger won Beverly, as did incumbent Rep. Jerry Parisella. Question 4 – on legalizing recreational marijuana – won the city and the state, though other North Shore towns flunked the ballot initiative.

Here are the unofficial election results for Beverly.

Readers: Did you leave the presidential option blank? Why or why not?