Concord Voter Turnout Up

Despite a purge in voter registrations that lowered , turnout was higher on Nov. 6, than it was in 2008, according to data released by the Concord City Clerk’s office.

In 2008, Concord had 30,226 registered voters. Of those voters, 21,682 voted in the general election, or 71.7 percent. This week, 29,010 people were registered to vote and 75.6 percent or just shy of 22,000 voters cast ballots, slightly more than 300 voters than in 2008.

Both as a percentage and in actual numbers of voters, Ward 10, the city’s most conservative ward, had the highest turnout, 81.6 percent, slightly higher than the 78 percent in 2008. Ward 3 and Ward were just tenths of a percentage short of 80 percent in turnout, with Ward 7 and Ward 5 taking second and third busiest wards, by actual voters.

Many school board ballots not cast

Since state officials will not allow the Concord School Board ballot on the state's official election ballot, a separate ballot is created for those races. The separate ballot, however, often creates confusion with voters and clearly depresses turnout in those races.

According to the data, while nearly 22,000 voters cast ballots on Nov. 6, only 18,178 cast ballots in the school board races.

These numbers are thrown off by the fact that most of Ward 1 – about 90 percent – and some parts of Ward 2, are in the Merrimack Valley School District and therefore, don't vote in the Concord School District races. 

However, hundreds of voters scattered across the city either didn’t take a school board ballot or weren’t given one. In Ward 2, as an example, slightly less than 500 voters didn’t cast a ballot. In Ward 8, it was more than 600 and more than 300 voters in Ward 5.

On Election Day, a number of sources stated that ward officials were asking people if they wanted a school board ballot instead of automatically giving the voters the school board ballot, possibly depressing the turnout. Concord City Clerk Janice Bonenfant said she would look at the issue in the coming weeks. 

Incumbent wins ‘Battle of the Lizzies’

In the city’s county commissioner seat race, it was Liz vs. Liz … with Liz winning.

Incumbent Commissioner Liz Blanchard, D-Penacook, who is also the Ward 1 city councilor, easily beat Liz Hager, R-Concord, a former mayor and gubernatorial candidate by more than 2,200 votes.

Blanchard won nine of 10 city wards with Hager taking Ward 10. Hager lost Wards 5, 6, and 7, areas she represented in the Legislature for many years.

Blanchard beat Hager in Boscawen, a place she thought she would lose, while Hager took Webster by about 50 votes.

The Hopkinton/Ward 5 district

Redistricting created quite a stir earlier this year and nothing was more challenged than the new Ward 5/Hopkinton combination district that some speculated was put together by Republicans in the House to oust long-time Democratic Majority Leader state Rep. Mary Jane Wallner, D-Concord.

In the end, the concept didn’t work.

Wallner placed a solid second behind fellow incumbent, state Rep. Gary Richardson, D-Hopkinton. Newcomer Mel Myler, D-Hopkinton, placed third with 3,281.

Former state Rep. Richard “Stretch” Kennedy, R-Hopkinton, placed fourth with a little more than 2,000 votes with fellow Republicans Debra Johnson and Frank Rosano trailing behind Kennedy.

New, old faces on school board

In the school board race, those people who did vote returned two familiar faces and voted two new members to the board.

Incumbents Kass Ardinger and Clint Cogswell were easily re-elected by solid margins.

For the third seat, Oliver Spencer, a retiring Marine edged out former Concord High School math teacher George “Rusty” Cofrin by less than 140 votes, coming in third in seven of the city’s 10 wards. Spencer, along with Ardinger and Cogswell, was endorsed by the Concord Monitor; Cofrin, along with Ardinger and Cogswell, was endorsed by the Concord Education Association. 

Former Beaver Meadow teacher Thomas Croteau easily bested three other candidates for the single two-year seat, currently held by Elizabeth “Betty” Hoadley and formerly held by Jack Dunn, who is now the district’s business administrator.

Eric Weiner and Patrick Taylor were both about 2,900 votes behind Croteau with Ridgely Mauck following in fourth.

Roger Phillips was elected clerk and Roger Brooks was elected treasurer, with both running unopposed.

Other election data

For all the talk of it being high turnout across the state, 2012 saw fewer people voting than in 2008, according to data.

Statewide, 6,500 fewer voters cast ballots in the presidential race in 2012 than voted in 2008.

President Barack Obama received 19,000 fewer votes in the Granite State in 2012 than he received in 2008.

Republican Mitt Romney received 9,000 more votes than John McCain did in 2008.

On the Libertarian line, Gary Johnson received 6,900 more votes that 2008 nominee Bob Barr and about 3,000 more than Ralph Nader and Barr combined in 2008.

In the 2010 Congressional race rematch, turnout was better for both candidates.

Ann McLane Kuster, the Democratic challenger, received 12,667 votes in 2012, nearly 4,000 more than she received in 2012.

U.S. Rep. Charles Bass, R-NH-2, received less than 2,000 more in 2012 than he received in 2012. Kuster won the seat by 17,094 votes with Libertarian candidate Hardy Macia receiving 15,779 votes.