Politics & Government
Golden Valley Voter Turnout Tops 89 Percent
Gwen Jorgens, an election judge for the City for 16 years, said overall voters did a good job following the new measures.
November 24, 2020
With an 89.17 percent voter turnout, Golden Valley topped the Minnesota average of around 80 percent for the Nov 3 General Election.
Find out what's happening in Golden Valleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“At 7 am on Election Day, the registered voter count for Golden Valley was 16,857,” said Theresa Schyma, City Clerk. “Based on that number, the voter turnout percentage was 94 percent. The City also saw 978 new voters register either through absentee voting or on Election Day at their polling locations. When these new voters are factored in, the overall turnout percentage is about 89 percent.”
Voting looked different this year as all polling places had increased health and safety measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Gwen Jorgens, an election judge for the City for 16 years, said overall voters did a good job following the new measures.
Find out what's happening in Golden Valleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“Almost everyone was very respectful of the public health requirements and protocols,” she said. “Voters were also appreciative of judges who were keeping everything clean and running smoothly.”
A total of 3,761 ballots were cast at eight polling places throughout the city on Nov 3. An additional 12,130 citizens voted absentee, for a grand total of 15,891 ballots cast. See the table for a breakdown by precinct.
Since many voters chose to vote early, either by mail, in-person, or other form, Jorgens said the smaller amount of election day voters allowed the judges to stay on top of tasks and provide better service.
“We had a smaller volume of in-person voters, which allowed our judges to focus on service, sanitizing, and any issues that arose, she said. “We also had more curbside voters this year, and the smaller volume of in-person voters allowed us to provide these services without slowing down other activities.”
For more information about voting in Golden Valley, or for a link to the General Election results, see Voting & Elections.
This press release was produced by the City of Golden Valley. The views expressed here are the author’s own.