Early voting turnout nothing short of dismal
The U.S. currently has thousands of troops stationed in Iraq with the hope of one day establishing a democracy there.
Those brave American soldiers are in the line of fire — their lives on the line every minute of the day. These are men and women with families back home. Many of them have husbands, wives and small children who are constantly praying for their safe return.
And this is all so the United States can establish a democracy in Iraq.
We can only hope the Iraqi people might one day appreciate democracy more than the residents of McMinnville. If the city’s current sales tax referendum is any indication, voter apathy is the prevailing sentiment here on the homefront.
The early voting numbers are so low, they are embarrassing to report. After close to two weeks of early voting, a meager 340 people have gone to the polls. It’s a number election officials consider extremely disappointing, even during a day when 50 percent voter turnout is considered a success.
By every measuring stick thus far, this sales tax referendum has been a flop. We can only hope the final four days of early voting, and the referendum day itself Sept. 4, entice more people to sacrifice five minutes of their time and let their voice be heard.
What’s at stake is raising the local option sales tax inside McMinnville city limits by three-quarters of a cent. That would make the local option sales tax 2.75 cents instead of 2 cents and would bring the overall sales tax in the city to 9.75 cents on the dollar.
What’s so puzzling is the fact the referendum pertains to something virtually everybody cares about – taxes. When it comes to the possibility of raising taxes, tempers are quick to flare. People don’t hesitate to shout, “No more taxes” and it doesn’t matter what the reason is for the proposed increase.
For the most part, this is a justifiable reaction. We all work hard for our money and we don’t want to voluntarily hand it over to our local, state or federal governments without a 10-round slugfest. We expect our government offices to run smoothly, efficiently, and at the least bit of expense to us, the taxpayers.
That said, McMinnville voters have sure fallen asleep at the wheel on the current proposal to raise the sales tax. This comes despite the fact city officials have indicated an 11-cent property tax increase is likely if a higher sales tax rate is not approved. And this lack of interest comes despite the fact city officials say the city property tax rate could be substantially lowered with a higher sales tax in effect.
All that on the line and there’s still no interest.
The Standard is optimistic there will be a vast turnaround the final four days of early voting, or on the referendum day itself. We can only hope people show up and vote for a measure that carries significant financial impact for McMinnville property owners.
If people don’t care about democracy and their right to vote here at home, why are we sending troops halfway across the globe to grant Iraqi people the privilege?