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Ward County voters not deterred by absentee ballot election

Holding all elections by absentee ballot, whether ballots are mailed in or dropped off, does not seem appealing. We can only hope what was prompted by COVID-19 for the primary election doesn’t become part of the “new norm.”

Certainly, the technology to hold elections that way exists. But there is something to be said for heading to the polls on Election Day and casting your ballot alongside another voter who might be checking the exact opposite boxes as you.

That being said, Tuesday’s primary election in Ward County saw a record turnout. Ward County counted 12,919 ballots in Tuesday’s election, setting a record for a primary election even before later arriving ballots are counted.

And that is a good thing; participation in the election process is as important, perhaps more important, than the outcomes.

Why was the turnout so high? Who knows at this moment. Continuing to fund Weather Modification, a controversial program for decades, was on the ballot. But so, too, were city elections. And politics in Minot certainly has heated up in recent years. Or, was there a push to get two retired teachers elected to the Minot School Board?

Doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter. The people had their say.

And they will again in November, but hopefully with the option of voting in person, behind a curtain, in a voting booth, at a public polling place, with many, many fellow citizens showing up to do the same.

Congratulations to all the elected candidates in Tuesday’s races. Serve us well.

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