Some Northeast Ohio communities have decisions to make at the ballot box on Tuesday, but many voters may not even know that May 2 is the date for Ohio’s Primary Election.
While folks in Akron will essentially be picking the city's next mayor Tuesday, and a handful of other cities are holding primaries for mayor, city council and other elected offices, a lot of communities have no races to decide.
But there are levies and bond issues up for a vote scattered across Northeast Ohio. The question is, will voters be motivated enough to be heard?
Andrew Mangels has spent 30 years in libraries, and in that time, he’s become used to hearing things like, “’I want to vote for the levy, but I need to ask you something.' If I don't have those facts at my fingertips, then I don't have credibility,” he said.
He's become a bit of an expert on the subject.
The Westlake Porter Public Library is seeking additional funds this year, and the levy is on the ballot. The facts are at Mengals’s fingertips, but there is very little else on the ballot. He’s also heard questions about whether a levy issue is enough to bring voters out on election day.
"You tend to get higher turnout for higher profile elections,” said Professor Jonathan Entin with Case Western Reserve University’s law school and political science department. "Those kinds of levies tend to have a harder time when they are essentially the only things on the ballot."
Parma Schools are on the ballot again. Since 2000, Parma has had a new money levy on the ballot 21 times. Three have passed.
"It has been a difficult go, but we think as a school district our job is always to craft a plan and try to get voters to understand the need and hopefully secure their endorsement,” said Parma Schools Superintendent Charles Smialek.
Parma Schools did close the gap last November, so leaders are relatively optimistic this go-around, despite the uphill climb.
One would think local elections would generate higher local turnout, but "that doesn't seem to be the case,” Entin said.
In Westlake, the library has a history of great support. The last renewal passed at about 80%, so people are encouraged, despite what else may or may not be around it on the ballot.
"You can't predict what's going to happen, but we feel we've demonstrated by going 15 years without asking for more money that we are responsible with the funds that we are given,” Mangels said.
The Westlake library and Parma Schools are both encouraged by what they're hearing, but they won’t know for sure until after the polls close Tuesday night.
Watch live and local news any time:
Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.
You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.
