Preliminary numbers from Monroe County say 15.8% of registered voters cast ballots in the presidential primary. A finalized total will be available later this month.
Nicole Browne, Monroe County Clerk, said 9,719 voters checked in to election sites Tuesday.
Kylie Moreland, Monroe County election supervisor, added there were 5,974 absentee ballots sent in. For comparison, there were 10,871 absentee votes in the 2016 primary, and 19,520 in the 2020 primary, which was during COVID-19.
Moreland said this year’s numbers are lower than typically seen in a presidential election year.
“We know that the general is going to have such a larger turn out than what the primary did,” she said.
Read more: Less than 2 hours until polls close, Monroe County voter turnout 13.4 percent
The last presidential primary in 2020 had a statewide turnout of 24% of registered voters. However, these numbers are an outlier due to increased use of absentee ballots during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Moreland said she is expecting a larger turnout in November.
“We don't really know exactly how much, number-wise, but we're anticipating that it will be close to what it was in 2016 just because of the fact that this is gonna be such a very important election,” she said.
Voter registration for the general election opens May 21.
