Politics & Government

Number of Registered Voters Declines Since Last Aberdeen Election

There are 7,997 active registered voters for the Aberdeen municipal election.

People voting for the first time in the Nov. 8 Aberdeen municipal election may make the difference in the race for mayor between incumbent and challenger .

Despite the job gravitation from , the number of registered voters in Aberdeen has decreased since the 2009 municipal election. There are 7,997 active registered voters to date, according to Dale Livingston, acting director of the Harford County Board of Elections

“Our voter numbers fluctuate because of people moving out, deaths” and other criteria, Livingston said.

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Only 21 percent of the 8,812 registered voters in the 2009 municipal election cast a ballot. Bennett did not garner 1,000 votes in his victory over Michael Hiob and Barbara Kreamer. 

“Is this apathy at it's finest, or what?” said Chuck Doty, a founding member of Aberdeen Communities Together, a watchdog organization.

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McGrady has been spending a lot of his time going door-to-door to introduce his views and plans for governing the city, trying to convince people to come to the polls. 

“This may be an indication of relative satisfaction of the city residents,” said Doty. “Keep in mind that Baltimore's mayoral primary this year only drew 22 percent.”

Last year, Bennett and the City Council passed a charter amendment, extending the length of terms for mayor and council members from two to four years. The mayor and council members will serve four-year terms after the Nov. 8 election.

In 2007, there was a 31.5 percent turnout with 8,018 registered voters. From the 2007 election to 2009, there was an increase of nearly 800 registered voters.

The four incumbent council members, Ruth Ann Young, Ruth Elliott, Bruce Garner and Sandra Lanbeck, are running unopposed.

In 2009, there were three more council candidates than seats available, with Ron Kupferman finishing as the first runner-up.


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