Monday Math For Tuesday’s Turnout

A Sad But True Story

It’s always a little dangerous to do math on Monday morning. But these numbers are compelling.

An estimated 32,000 people live in Valpo. 21% are under 18 years old. (Sorry kids, but for this post you don’t count — at least not directly). That leaves about 25,000 of us eligible to vote in next Tuesday’s general citywide election.

How many ballots were cast in the last citywide general in 2011? A flimsy 4,357 were cast for mayor! 2,967 were cast in favor of the incumbent, Jon Costas. I like our mayor a lot and believe he has done a great job revitalizing downtown. But, when only 12% of the voting-age population can elect leadership for 100% of the people, scary things can happen.

This year, the mayor is running unopposed. So the top of the ticket is a foregone conclusion. Still, the election is important. Several city council seats hang in the balance. Who will be there to advise and challenge the mayor in his fourth term? The answer to that is up to us. But we need to turnout in better numbers to make sure they represent us well.