by BOB BARTON
At the half-way mark of early voting in Hays County, it appears that area voters are going to turn out in record numbers for next Tuesday’s election that will choose officials ranging from the Presidency to Constable in the Kyle-Buda area precincts.
A quick examination of County Election Director Joyce Cowan’s report over the weekend of the first six days of early voting surprisingly shows that 21,041 people have already voted early, along with slightly more than 3,000 mail ballots added to those numbers.
Surprising to those who have predicted a downturn in participation for this presidential election, the totals indicate a heavy turnout in the parts of San Marcos dominated by Texas State University students and suggests that President Barack Obama may well carry nearly all of the boxes located within the corporate limits of our county seat.
In addition, a heavy turnout from an early voting standpoint of voters who reside along the Interstate-35 corridor show that Obama may take many of the boxes in that part of the county, just as he did four years ago.
At the half-way point 7,173 voters have cast ballots in San Marcos in the first six days of early voting, with another 6,425 in boxes in and around Buda and Kyle. Dripping Springs, with a strong Republican background, has cast 3,862 votes through Saturday, and the Wimberley area has totaled 2,446.
Four years ago, John McCain got 29,624 votes in Hays County while President Obama polled 28,416.
In other political happenings, the race for state representative has obviously tightened up and statewide Republican leaders are somewhat worried about the chances of Democrat John Adams upsetting incumbent GOP’er Jason Isaac. Both sides have been working hard and walking the precincts. Adams, a former member of the Dripping Springs School Board, has strong support from teachers and supporters of the four county public school systems. Isaacs surprised longtime incumbent Patrick Rose in an upset two years ago, buoyed by the loan of several hundred thousand dollars from a neighbor. He still owes the man about two-thirds of the loan.
With four days of additional voting this week, the total early vote may exceed 30,000 and the final tally could surpass 60,000 participants. If it hits that number, it means that Hays will be in about 15th place in total turnout of the state’s 254 counties.
We’ll have a full compliment of election results next Wednesday, even if it means that our staff will spend most of Tuesday night in the production end of our building.
Publisher Emeritus Bob Barton has been writing about politics for more than 50 years and has owned the Hays Free Press since his college days.
