Incumbents and favorites win
BY ANDREW MACKIE
NEWTON
Incumbents and favorites ruled Election Day in Catawba County.
U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry, N.C. Sen. Austin Allran and two Board of Commissioners handily gained victories.
Democratic congressional candidate Daniel Johnson defeated Steve Ivester in a battle of Hickory residents by 6,487 votes. Johnson will face McHenry in the November election.
Favorites dominated, except for Barack Obama. The Illinois senator easily won North Carolina, but lost Catawba County to opponent Hillary Clinton by 2,495 votes.
Despite several high-profile races, turnout exceeded that of a typical primary, but failed to meet initial expectations.
Catawba County Board of Elections Director Larry Brewer originally projected a 40 percent turnout given the massive attention given to the Democratic presidential contest and several competitive state and local races. The county ended with a 32 percent turnout, substantially more than the 18 percent turnout in the 2004 primary.
“It’s still less than what we thought,” Brewer said. “The percentage looks good, but it’s still low.”
Three Hickory precincts reported heavier than normal voting for a primary.
“For us, it’s been a steady flow,” said Lamar Mitchell, chief judge at the Oakwood’s precinct. “It’s higher, but not anything like we were expecting.”
At 5:30 p.m., 465 people at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church had voted out of roughly 1,400 registered voters for a 42 percent turnout. Typically, primary turnout at the precinct hovers in the 25 percent range, Mitchell said.
At College Park precinct near Lenoir-Rhyne College, 233 people had voted at 6 p.m. out of about 1,200 registered voters. Democratic voters outnumbered Republicans despite the precinct being predominantly Republican.
Election officials at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church on N.C. 127 reported a similar story.
As of 6:30 p.m., 673 out of 2,300 registered voters had cast ballots. A turnout of nearly 40 percent was expected, higher than most primaries. Turnout for Catawba County was 32 percent.
Officials there noticed more Democrats voting and at least five times the normal number of black voters.
The campaign excitement drew new voters and new campaign volunteers.
Jim Pritchard handed out Johnson campaign literature at the Holy Trinity precinct in northwest Hickory. Pritchard lives four blocks from Johnson’s mother and father’s home. He has known Johnson for eight years. His relationship with the Johnsons caused Pritchard to get involved in his first campaign.
“I don’t care much for politicians, but he’s different. His experiences have had him appreciate lives and other people’s lives. He has worked for a living, which I like. This is a guy who walks the center line and can go either way if it’s the right thing to do,” he said.
