Pitifully low turnout for Ohio's special Aug. primary - Axios ColumbusLog InLog InAxios Columbus is an Axios company.

Pitifully low turnout for special August primary

Note: Final bar shows turnout for the primary as of close of polls on Aug. 2. Results are unofficial pending absentee and provisional ballot counts. Years included are those with Statehouse primary contests; Data: Ohio Secretary of State; Chart: Nicki Camberg/AxiosJust nine of the 952 voters registered to a slivered voting precinct near Canal Winchester made the trip to Gender Road Christian Church Tuesday to cast a ballot.That 1% turnout still beats the seven total voters in a precinct off High Street.And it's more than the turnout at a University of Cincinnati precinct: 0. Why it matters: Tuesday's pitiful public participation was the predictable result of a second primary for Statehouse elections . If summertime plans didn't keep voters away, the lack of competitive races did.More than 80% of the races featured a candidate running unopposed — or no candidate at all. Eye-popping stat: to hold this extra election, amounting to nearly $32 spent per ballot cast. The big picture: The statewide voter turnout was 7.9%, . No county has reached a 20% turnout and only 14 have cracked double digits.Those figures may increase slightly as late arriving mail-in ballots are tabulated and provisional votes are resolved. Zoom in: Franklin County's turnout was 6.8%, the lowest in any election since 2013. Tyler's thought bubble: I cast one of just 48 ballots at my precinct. For reference, I saw way more people in line to see the last weekend."It's been busier than we thought," a cheerful poll worker told me. They must not have expected much, since the precinct turnout was a paltry 5%. The bottom line: Tuesday's election followed a year of political pingpong, missed deadlines and defiance of judicial oversight.It's easy to have gotten lost in the drumbeat of redistricting coverage. But this is how we got here: Sept. 16: The Ohio Redistricting Commission, made up of five Republicans and two Democrats, , without bipartisan support. The Ohio Supreme Court later . Jan. 22: Commission passes a without bipartisan support.. Feb. 24: Commission passes a without bipartisan support.. March 28: Commission passes a without bipartisan support.. May 3: Ohio's first primary election is held without state legislative races. May 5: Commission resubmits the again without bipartisan support. May 27: to hold a second primary, for state legislative races, using the unconstitutional third set of maps. Aug. 2: Just 6.93% of Ohioans cast ballots in that taxpayer funded, $20 million election. Get more local stories in your inbox with .Subscribe Support local journalism by becoming a member.

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