Low Turnout expected in CA June Primary

By Dan Walters, Sac Bee

One consequence of the state’s first February presidential primary election will almost certainly be an extraordinarily low voter turnout for the June 3 regular primary. Primary elections generally see subpar turnouts, in part because independents have almost no motivation to vote.

But June’s election will be especially devoid of motivation – no presidential contest or any other statewide candidate duel, only a handful of meaningful legislative or congressional primaries and just two statewide ballot measures, both of which deal with the very arcane issue of property seizures by local governments.

We’ll have 15-plus million Californians registered to vote in June. But given the low turnouts of past primaries and the lack of motivating contests this year, it wouldn’t be surprising if as few as 5 million of them actually cast ballots. And that will mean that even more than usual, the electorate will be dominated by hyper-partisans on the left and right – folks who view politics with almost religious fervor.

The primaries in 34 legislative districts whose incumbents are being forced out due to term limits will be decided by the most liberal voters in the Democratic districts and the most conservative ones in the Republican districts. That, if anything, will bring even more ideological polarization to the Capitol.